Boost for Berhalter as Adams returns to USA squad

Adams, who captained the USA team that was knocked out of the World Cup by the Netherlands in the round of 16, has struggled with injuries and has been sidelined by a hamstring injury for almost all of this season.

Adams, who joined Bournemouth from Leeds United in the off-season, has yet to feature in the Premier League this campaign and his only appearance was in an EFL Cup tie against Stoke City in September when he was replaced after 20 minutes with further hamstring trouble. But he has been back in full training in recent weeks and was an unused substitute in the Cherries' 2-2 draw with Sheffield United on Saturday.

"This decision was basically the output of months of communication with his club to track where he's at, to see the levels that he's performing at in training, the loads that he's doing in training and then finally, a conversation with his coach (Andoni Iraola) two days ago," Berhalter told reporters on Wednesday.

"He thinks that he's actually ready to play minutes today in the Premier League, so we'll see how that ends up, you know, potentially 30 minutes, 15 minutes, who knows. But certainly they think at the club that he has enough to play up to 45 minutes for us, so once we heard that, we jumped at that idea."

While Adams might not yet be ready to play a major part on the field when the USA face Jamaica in their semi-final on March 21 in Dallas, Berhalter said it was important to have him involved with the squad again. "He means so much to the team both on and off the field. It'll be nice to get him back," he said.

Jamaica will represent a tough challenge for the USA's hopes of reaching the final, where they would play Mexico or Panama. "They are a strong team, a well coached team, compact, good counter-attacking and good defensive shape and they have quality," said Berhalter, noting the form of Aston Villa winger Leon Bailey in particular.

Also back in the USA squad for the first time since the World Cup is Norwich City forward Josh Sargent, who has scored 12 goals in 17 appearances for the Championship club this season, with 10 since the new year. But there was no place in the roster for striker Brandon Vazquez despite his seven goals in 12 games since joining Mexican club Monterrey.

Squad:

GOALKEEPERS: Drake Callender (Inter Miami), Ethan Horvath (Cardiff City), Matt Turner (Nottingham Forest)

DEFENDERS: Sergino Dest (PSV Eindhoven), Kristoffer Lund (Palermo), Mark McKenzie (Genk), Tim Ream (Fulham), Chris Richards (Crystal Palace), Antonee Robinson (Fulham), Miles Robinson (FC Cincinnati), Joe Scally (Borussia Monchengladbach)

MIDFIELDERS: Tyler Adams (Bournemouth), Johnny Cardoso (Real Betis), Luca de la Torre (Celta Vigo), Weston McKennie (Juventus), Yunus Musah (AC Milan), Gio Reyna (Nottingham Forest)

FORWARDS: Folarin Balogun (Monaco), Malik Tillman (PSV Eindhoven), Ricardo Pepi (PSV Eindhoven), Christian Pulisic (AC Milan), Josh Sargent (Norwich City), Tim Weah (Juventus)

 

March 13, 2024