A deep breath is being taken by Tyler Adams before the second Leeds United push as he shakes off the last of a World Cup calf knock. Qatar and his Manchester City suspension have paved the way for a managed approach to Adams’s New Year’s Eve return.
The 23-year-old was pitchside at Elland Road on Tuesday night as the club opened its doors for supporters to watch an open training session in aid of charity Mission Christmas. As was the case last Friday when Real Sociedad visited, Adams was conspicuous by his absence from the field.
It transpires Adams is not only recuperating from every minute of four, full throttle matches, but also a calf knock he suffered in the Netherlands loss. The USA captain would have been training in front of the fans if he had his way, but Jesse Marsch and the medical staff have taken this chance to give him an extended reset and flush out any issues.
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“I just had a little bit of a knock in the last game against Netherlands, just in my calf,” he said. “Just coming back from that a little bit, but not bothering me anymore.
“I feel good, feel sharp. I would be training, but Jesse’s saying take all the time you need if you can right now it's an opportunity.”
While he seems set to watch both the Monaco and City matches from the sidelines, he will be back for the final clash of 2022 at Newcastle United. While he’s not into the blood and thunder of every group training session yet, Adams knows he has to keep sharp with the Magpies trip only three days after City.
While he would love to be in the thick of it, he cannot underestimate what that World Cup campaign took out of him, nor the advice of the medical staff at Thorp Arch.
“Four games played, I played every minute and they were very demanding games,” he said. “You leave everything out there on the field.
“After that, I got seven days to mentally shut off a little bit, but still the body was catching up to everything when I came back. The coach and the medical staff have given me a couple more days extra.
“Obviously I'm suspended against Man City as well. So I've been doing a little bit of individual work to stay sharp, but yes, I'm catching up, catching up.”
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