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Jeff Carlisle, American soccer correspondent
AFC Bournemouth midfielder Tyler Adams of the United States men’s national team is expected to face another extended period of sidelines after undergoing back surgery, according to Cherries manager Andoni Iraola.
Bournemouth are scheduled to play EFL League One side Wrexham at UC Santa Barbara in a pre-match friendly on Saturday. Iraola was asked during the pre-match press conference how important it was for Adams to stay fit, to which he revealed that the midfielder had undergone back surgery.
“He finished the season with a back injury,” Iraola said. “He wanted to play the Copa América because it was very important for him, but he had limitations and was still in pain, so two days after they were knocked out, he had surgery.”
Iraola expects Adams to be out for some time, but he would not give a specific timeline for the midfielder’s return.
“It’s hard to say how long, but he won’t be fit for the start of the season,” Iraola said. “But September? October? I don’t know.”
Iraola was then asked why Bournemouth had not prevented Adams from playing in the Copa America. The manager said: “It wasn’t our choice. It’s a decision of the countries, who can select players, and he wanted to play because he thought the injury would get better, but he felt it was getting worse.”
Adams was restricted in minutes in the build-up to the Copa América, not playing at all in the 5-1 friendly defeat to Colombia and playing just 14 minutes in the 1-1 draw with Brazil.
In an interview with ESPN in June, ahead of the friendly in Brazil, Adams was asked about the back injury. He admitted it was a problem towards the end of the club season, but said he was building up his fitness with the U.S.
“It was my back at the end of the season,” Adams said. “But I felt good going into training camp and was ready to train, but they said, ‘No, no, no, let’s just build it up properly.’ Because again, the most important thing for me is obviously to have a good Copa America, but to be ready for pre-season. I just want to get in a fit position where I can build up for eight, nine, 10 weeks to the start of the season and be in a really good position to get robust again.”
Adams ultimately played 180 minutes in three Copa América matches, including a 90-minute stint in the group stage final against Uruguay, a 1-0 defeat that eliminated the U.S. from the tournament.
The surgery is the latest injury Adams has suffered since completing a $25 million move from Leeds United last August. The USMNT captain made just four first-team appearances for the Cherries last season, totaling 138 minutes, after undergoing surgery to repair his right hamstring in October. He had previously undergone a similar procedure while at Leeds.
The latest surgery means Adams is likely to miss two U.S. friendlies against Canada and New Zealand in the September international break. It could mark the debut of the next U.S. national team manager following the July 10 firing of Gregg Berhalter.