The USMNT sprouts a constant dialogue of whether or not players should stay in MLS or go abroad. Tyler Adams is different, given where he’s at in his career.
Everyone with even the minutest knowledge of soccer in America has an opinion over whether or not the next wave of USMNT talent should be staying in MLS or going abroad. The arguments are pretty clear-cut.
If you stay in MLS, you are living the American soccer experience. You are more exposed to players you’ll probably be playing alongside and the opposition is heavily CONCACAF, which helps in times of Gold Cup and whatnot.
If you go abroad, you have better academies and chances to develop. You have better coaches, better facilities and better leagues. The people you play against are going to be on a World Cup level, not just a CONCACAF level.
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Tyler Adams is now in that predicament. He made his breakthrough with the New York Red Bulls, but their German counterpart, RB Leipzig have come sniffing about for his services. And he should take that opportunity without a second thought.
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It’s not such a clear-cut choice in every situation, but Adams’ situation couldn’t be clearer. He needs only look at the success rate of the Bundesliga in making young American talents incredibly relevant at a young age – Weston McKennie and Christian Pulisic, for instance, with Josh Sargent on his way.
But Tyler Adams isn’t an “on his way” kind of move. RB Leipzig cleared the way for the young American when they agreed to offload Naby Keita to Liverpool this coming summer.
Naby Keita is very Tyler Adams-esque. He’s an athlete first, a ball-winner and a wrecker. That is what awaits him at RB Leipzig – the same thing that Naby Keita had. The same thing Adams has in New Jersey, only against superior opposition and far more upside for growth.
This is so much bigger than MLS. This is speaking on soccer at the global level. Tyler Adams is that good. It’s not that often that a European-contending team has an opening that just so happens to be exactly what you are, as an 18-year-old, and they are willing to give you the keys to the mint.
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It’s not going to come again if he doesn’t take it. There’s a chance that he will develop just fine in the United States, but why not jumpstart it even more and take Weston McKennie’s example? The Bundesliga takes promising young talents and makes them future stars.