United States men’s national team midfielder Tyler Adams said the new generation of players called up for the international window are prospects, highlighting the potential of the young group heading into the upcoming friendlies.
“They have earned it and not just been given something because of their potential. I think whenever you get your first call up, there’s a reason that you get the call up,” Adams, 27, said on Wednesday.
“Prospect is a great word, but they’re doing at a high level right now. And for me, as a product of MLS and a kid that came through MLS, you have to respect the league and the level that they’re playing at such a young age, because you’re competing against grown men.”
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The average age of head coach Mauricio Pochettino‘s original September-October 28-player roster is 22 years and nine months. The USMNT manager also called up 13 uncapped players, including midfielder Adri Mehmeti.
“It’s a big step for me. I mean, coming in with all these young guys and experienced guys, being able to learn off them, see all the different characters and how it kind of all blends in together to the style that the U.S. want to play,” Mehmeti said on Wednesday. “It’s been great. Again, it’s a big jump, but it’s going to take some time to get used to.”
Adams added that the younger players entering the senior team face less pressure than he did when first earning a call up to the USMNT.
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The veteran midfielder made his USMNT debut on Nov. 14, 2017 in an international friendly before going on to play a crucial role in the senior team in qualifying to the 2022 World Cup.
Adams currently boasts two goals in 58 appearances. He became the youngest USMNT captain at a World Cup at 23 years and 288 days when earning the title in Qatar 2022.
“My situation was a little bit different than the guys that are coming into the fold right now. I say that because I think there is less pressure on these young kids to come in and perform immediately and more time to be able to actually develop them,” Adams said.
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“Whereas when I came in, it was off the cusp of obviously not qualifying for the World Cup. And it was like, you guys basically need to play right now and need to perform right now so that we can qualify for the next World Cup.
“Two years after my first appearance, I’m already thrown into a World Cup qualifying cycle and we need to try and obviously figure that out and how to qualify for the 2022 World Cup. I look at this generation of players right now and I think they’re in a great position that they can go through the process properly and really just lean on guidance and go through and get their own experiences, have opportunities like the Olympics as well along that way and other competitions to really grow them for the next World Cup.”
The USMNT will face Peru on Sept. 26, before going on to play against Chile, Mexico and Canada during the September-October international window.
“When you have opportunities to play the likes of Mexico and Canada, It’s so easy to get up for those games,” Adams said.
“I think that’s what’s so exciting to have so many of these young players in camp as well as they’ll finally get a little bit of taste of what those rivalries are like and what those games mean and what it means to represent the country.”
