DOOPing Overseas: Brenden Aaronson wins the EFL Championship, Stuart Findlay shines in Scotland

Saturday was a great day for Union fans, watching Brenden Aaronson lift the EFL Championship trophy with Leeds United in the morning and watching the first team score a late winner against CF Montreal at night. Aaronson became the fourth former Union player to win a trophy overseas in the last two months. Outside of Aaronson’s success, it was a quiet week for former Union players overseas, with multiple players injured and suspended. 

With sustained success this decade, fans have seen some of the brightest academy talents, their favorite players, and outcasts make their way overseas to compete in some of the best leagues in the world. The club is represented in Europe, South America, the Middle East, and more.

Let’s see how some of those former Union players fared in last week’s matches:

Brenden Aaronson – The former Union midfielder played 79 minutes in Leeds United’s final game of the season, a 2-1 road win against Plymouth Argyle. A late goal in second-half stoppage time lifted Leeds to the EFL Championship title. Aaronson was the most accurate passer of any player to play 45 minutes or more in the match (95%). The 24-year-old finished the season with a career-best 9 goals. This was Aaronson’s third league title in Europe and first with Leeds, having won his prior two with RB Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga. 

Stuart Findlay – The former Union center back has been bright for Kilmarnock since returning from a lengthy injury in late March. Findlay has anchored a backline that has recorded back-to-back clean sheets in the Scottish Premiership Relegation Group. The 29-year-old made 13 clearances and won 9 of his 13 duels (ground and aerial) in Kilmarnock’s 2-0 road win over St. Johnstone on Saturday. Findlay and Kilmarnock are six points clear of a relegation qualification spot with three matches left. 

Jose Martinez – The former Union midfielder played 67 minutes in Corinthians’ 4-2 win over Internacional in the Brazilian Serie A on Saturday. Martinez accurately completed 92 percent of his passes and created two chances. The 30-year-old made three recoveries, an interception, and one successful tackle. Martinez also came on as a sub last Wednesday during the first leg of the Copa Do Brasil third round against Novorizontino.

Damion Lowe – The former Union center back’s streak of shutouts (3) ended on Thursday when Al Akhdoud fell at home to Al-Wehda. Lowe was by far his team’s best player in the loss. He completed 38 passes, the most by any player in the match. Lowe made seven clearances, six recoveries, five interceptions, and two crucial last-man tackles. Despite Lowe’s performance, Al Akhdoud lost a pivotal relegation matchup. Al-Wehda jumped Al Akhdoud in the relegation zone, leaving Lowe’s team two points below the safety line with four games left. 

Other Notables

– Leon Flach has been ruled out till the middle of May with a thigh injury he sustained in April. He has not played since April 13 and could miss the rest of Jagiellonia Bialystok’s season.

– Mark McKenzie was suspended again for Toulouse’s win on Saturday after being shown a straight red card two games ago.

– Julian Carranza missed his second straight game with an unknown injury. Feyenoord won 4-1 in his absense.

What’s Next

– Jose Martinez and Corinthians host America de Cali in the Copa Sudamericana on Tuesday, May 6 at 8:30 p.m. ET.

– Stuart Findlay and Kimarnock host Dundee FC on Saturday, May 10 at 10 a.m. ET.

– Auston Trusty and Celtic host Hibernian on Saturday, May 10 at 10 a.m. ET.

– Jamiro Monteiro and PEC Zwolle play Go Ahead Eagles on Sunday, May 11 at 6:15 a.m. ET.

– Paxten Aaronson and FC Utrecht return after a week off to play FC Twente on Sunday, May 11 at 8:30 a.m. ET.

– Julian Carranza and Feyenoord host second-place PSV on Sunday, May 11 at 8:30 a.m. ET. It is unclear if Carranza will be fit to play. 

– Damion Lowe and Al Akhdoud will look to shut down Cristiano Ronaldo and Al Nassar FC on Monday, May 12 at 2 p.m. ET. 

Check back with DOOPing Overseas next week to find out how these former Union players performed.