For the first time since the 2022 World Cup, Tyler Adams is a member of the U.S. men’s national soccer team again.
Later Wednesday, the 25-year-old midfielder, who captained the U.S. team at the World Cup in Qatar, was a 71st-minute substitute for Bournemouth against Luton Town, ending an absence of more than five months with a hamstring injury. He also missed considerable time earlier in 2023 because of similar issues.
Berhalter said Bournemouth officials told him Adams could play “up to 45 minutes for us” in a Nations League match.
“Once we heard that, we jumped at that idea because he means so much to the team, both on and off the field,” Berhalter said. “It would be nice to get him back. … He’s been missed for a while.”
Josh Sargent is also returning to the U.S. team for the first time since the World Cup. After recovering from an ankle injury in late December, the 24-year-old forward has scored nine times for Norwich City in the English second division.
Adams and Sargent will join 19 others from European clubs and two from MLS at training camp in greater Dallas, starting Monday. The Americans will face Jamaica in a March 21 semifinal at AT&T Stadium. Mexico and Panama will also clash that night. The third-place game and final are three days later.
Christian Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tim Weah headline the roster, which includes 21 players who were part of Nations League championship teams the previous two years.
Because the player pool is, at the moment, robust both in fitness and depth, Berhalter faced several difficult roster decisions.
“Of all the times that we had to pick squads, this was probably the most difficult,” he said. “This is a tough squad to break into.”
Consequently, several candidates with international experience or with strong portfolios this club season failed to make the cut.
That list includes Brenden Aaronson, a World Cup attacker who is playing infrequently for Germany’s Union Berlin; center back Auston Trusty, a Premier League starter for Sheffield United; and Haji Wright, a World Cup striker who has scored 13 goals for Coventry City in the English second division.
It also includes Germany-based midfielder Lennard Maloney and forward Jordan Pefok and Mexico-based attackers Brandon Vazquez and Alejandro Zendejas. Since joining Monterrey from FC Cincinnati in January, Vazquez has posted seven goals in 12 matches across all competitions. Zendejas has eight goals and six assists in 26 appearances for Club América.
World Cup center back Cameron Carter-Vickers was not chosen because of a hamstring ailment. Young players with national team credentials, such as goalkeeper Gabriel Slonina and winger Kevin Paredes, are expected to join the under-23 squad, which will ramp up Olympic preparations with two friendlies in Europe, March 22 vs. Guinea in Spain and March 25 at France.
Pulisic and McKennie are enjoying excellent seasons in Italy’s Serie A with AC Milan and Juventus, respectively. McKennie is tied for second in the league with seven assists, one ahead of Pulisic, who has also scored eight goals, one shy of his career high, set four years ago with Chelsea.
Three members of Dutch-leading PSV Eindhoven made the squad: right back Sergiño Dest and forwards Ricardo Pepi and Malik Tillman. (Dest is ineligible for the Nations League semifinal because of a red card against Trinidad & Tobago last fall.)
Not everyone is thriving with their club: Matt Turner, the starting goalkeeper at the World Cup, has struggled at times with Premier League club Nottingham Forest, while midfielder Gio Reyna has played sparingly since arriving at Forest from Germany’s Borussia Dortmund six weeks ago.
“It’s always concerning when guys aren’t getting regular minutes,” Berhalter said. Reyna, he added, “has performed well this last year and we thought that was enough to include him in this squad.”
The only MLS selections were Inter Miami goalkeeper Drake Callender and Cincinnati center back Miles Robinson.
U.S. roster
Goalkeepers: Drake Callender (Inter Miami), Ethan Horvath (Cardiff City), Matt Turner (Nottingham Forest).
Defenders: Sergiño 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 (Mönchengladbach).
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).
