Ricardo Pepi Injured, Misses Champions League Match
The American PSV Eindhoven striker, Ricardo Pepi, suffered an injury during his team’s 2-1 victory against Excelsior this weekend, as confirmed by the club. This injury will keep him out of the crucial Champions League match against Bayer Leverkusen.Pepi had started for the fourth time this season with PSV, after recovering from a knee injury suffered in January. On Saturday, he had to be substituted after just over half an hour of play against Excelsior.Medical examinations revealed that Ricardo Pepi suffered a slight strain in his upper leg. In the coming days, Pepi will work individually on his recovery before gradually rejoining team training.
PSV Eindhoven statement
Pepi, 22 years old, had started the season with the hope of securing a place in the United States national team for the 2026 World Cup. It is not yet clear whether Pepi will be available for the PSV match against PEC Zwolle on Saturday. Pepi’s injury in January prevented him from participating in this summer’s Concacaf Gold Cup, as well as the friendlies in September against South Korea and Japan. The former FC Dallas player, with 13 goals in 33 appearances for the US national team, still has time to earn a place on Mauricio Pochettino’s list for the World Cup.He said he felt something, but he could continue. I don’t want to take any risks when he says something like that. I’m not going to take any risks at this stage with someone who has slight discomfort. A more in-depth examination will have to reveal what the situation is like.
Peter Bosz, coach
