Tyler, The Midfielder

After two substitute appearances, followed by two starts in which he played 64 and 66 minutes, Tyler Adams started and played his first full 90 minutes of the Premier League season on Saturday, in Bournemouth’s 4-2 win at Wolves. According to The Athletic, the 25-year-old central midfielder made more defensive actions than any other player on the pitch, as he “quietly influenced Bournemouth’s first victory in three matches.” After being out for months due to injury, it has to be seen as a huge positive that Adams was able to positively impact the entire match from such a demanding position.

Next up for Tyler and the Cherries — which sounds for all the world like a buzz-y garage band you’d see on a Tuesday afternoon at South By Southwest — is a visit from Spurs on Thursday.

The Puli Report

Despite the San Siro being foggier than a Grateful Dead concert, an eagle-eyed Christian Pulisic saw through the smoke and pulled off an assist in Milan’s 3-0 win over Empoli on Saturday (watch), then played the second half of the Rossoneri’s 6-1 Coppa Italia win over Sassuolo on Tuesday. But the biggest news of the week for Puli arguably came off the pitch, as the USMNT star was nominated for FIFA’s The Best XI last week. Pulisic will be competing with the likes of midfielders Jude Bellingham, Martin Odegaard, Cole Palmer, and Rodri, among others to make the final team. But quite an honor regardless, and justified given the 2024 Puli has had.

Pulisic ‘24-25 Club Stats in All Comps: 19 App.| 16 Starts | 8 Goals | 5 Assists

🔴⚫️ Pulisic models AC Milan’s new 125th Anniversary kit. The club only making 1,899 units—marking the year the club was formed—and will make its in-game debut on December 8th when the women's team take on Genoa. ❤️ You can SHOP YOUR OWN right here thanks to the GFOPs at WorldSoccerShop.

Postcards From Germany

As stateside soccer watchers who rely on ESPN+ to monitor the goings-on in the Bundesliga, we essentially have a grand total of 78 minutes of game footage — spread out over five substitute appearances — from which to assess the levels Borussia Dortmund winger Cole Campbell would seem to be capable of hitting as a footballer. But if you talk to the 18-year-old himself, he has no ceiling.

“As far as long-term goals for my career, I want to win a Ballon d’Or, the Champions League and a World Cup. In the future I think it’s all possible,” Campbell told Goal.com in a recent interview.

One genuinely has to admire the confidence possessed by the USMNT winger. Personally, we here at ASU would settle for the third achievement, but absolutely pulling for Campbell to check the other two boxes as well.

Two years older, and one tier down, Damion Downs continues to deliver like a German postman for FC Köln. The 20-year-old striker scored his sixth league goal for the Geißböcke in their 2-2 draw with Hannover 96 on Saturday (watch).

More from the 2. Bundesliga … Julian Green and Max Dietz played all 90 minutes — with Green scoring his fifth goal of the season — in Greuther Fürth’s 1-1 draw at Ulm … Twenty-year-old midfielder Santiago Castañeda continues his “Cal Ripken of Germany”-esque streak for Paderborn, as he’s now made it 14 starts in 14 games for the current second-tier table-toppers.

As for future Germericans (“Amerigerms”?), 18-year-old defender Noahkai Banks made his first matchday squad for FC Augsburg on Saturday, and 17-year-old Philadelphia Union product Neil Pierre is currently trialing with Borussia Mönchengladbach, according to Fabrizio Romano.

News and Notes

• From the “Bien News/Mauvaise News” Department: USMNT striker Folarin Balogun made his first start since Oct. 5 in Monaco’s 2-1 loss at Marseille, but latest word from the French club is the shoulder is still causing him pain, meaning he could miss his Arsenal UCL homecoming on Wednesday, as well as Saturday’s clash with Mark McKenzie and Toulouse.

• More on Mark McKenzie … since returning from October’s Camp Poch, the 25-year-old center back has started all six Ligue 1 games for Toulouse, a run that has seen Les Violets notch four wins and four shutouts.

• Must Read Of The Week: This Brenden Aaronson article in The Telegraph. In it, the USMNT midfielder talks about a range of topics, including: how he’s added muscle without becoming “brawny”; failing his U.K. driving test twice so far (“third time’s the charm”); and the origin of his “Medford Messi” nickname. Definitely worth your click.

• Ricardo Pepi sat down with Goal and gave his rapid-fire picks as to which U.S. or Mexican footballers were more influential figures in their homelands. While El Tren scored it 8-0 to El Tri in the interview, one genuinely has to admire his candor and willingness to speak his mind.

• USMNT attacking legend Jozy Altidore sat down with FOX Sports’ Doug McIntyre to discuss everything from “terrific human being” Christian Pulisic, to friendly rival Mauricio Pochettino, to never having officially announced his retirement from the game. Suppose we should’ve put an asterisk next to “legend” above.

Final Touch

The above photo is from 2017, taken by yours truly, of a young Tyler Adams attending a Kingston Stockade FC match in upstate New York. 

I was the GM of Stockade at the time — a semi-pro team based in Kingston, N.Y. that played in the NPSL, but is now part of the brand-new "The League For Clubs" (here’s a New York Times article from 2017 on Stockade) — and one of the assistant coaches mentioned that the then-New York Red Bulls midfielder was in attendance. So naturally we asked to get a pic for the club socials.

Hailing from nearby Wappingers Falls, N.Y., Adams was there to watch some friends from home play, as well as check out what was happening with Stockade and the local clubs in general. In the short time spent with him, he was extremely friendly and charming, especially for a teenager new to the national attention his footballing promise was already beginning to bestow upon him.

I came across the photo recently, and it made me reflect on Tyler’s journey from the New York Hudson Valley all the way to the South Coast of England. His career is another reminder of how far football has come in this country, and how wonderful it is that the players hitting the highest levels in Europe still remain closely connected to the soccer communities that helped them get to where they are now.

—Randy Kim

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