Tyler Adams on Copa América, Weston McKennie, Jesse Marsch and more

Last Saturday Tyler Adams unveiled a new soccer mini-pitch at Fisher Magnet Upper Academy in Detroit and then put on a clinic for kids aged seven to 12. This was part of a partnership between Adams, Allstate, Black Star and the U.S. Soccer Foundation which will donate another pitch each year for the next three years.

Speaking on the event with FanSided, Adams said, "What an amazing day! The partnership that I am now continuing to do with Allstate has been a very fortunate one. At this point in my career I want to partner with the right people and do the right things.

"To spend a couple of days in Detroit with kids and familys that are now going to have access to a mini-pitch. It will not only help them grow as athletes but also as people and that is very important to me."

Adams, who got involved in soccer through his mother is pleased to give the kids of Detroit something that he did not have when he was younger. When asked if he played in mini-pitches as a kid, Adams replied, "I wish I did and that is why I want to build them now. For me, it was always walking to a park and kicking the ball off of a wall.

"I did not meet many kids that wanted to play soccer. Growing up in a town in America everyone wants to play baseball, basketball, American football. So I did not have a million friends that wanted to play soccer. I wish I had access to something like that but that is why we are doing it now."

Reflecting on his first interactions with soccer, Adams said, "My mum played in high school, she played basketball as well so she was an athlete. She did not push me to play soccer but it was the first sport that I played and it was the one that I enjoyed the most. It had the most running for sure, so it was the only thing that made me tired, so my mum wanted me to play a lot of it!"

Adams' hero growing up was Thierry Henry and he was lucky enough to get to know him when he was with the New York Red Bulls, "Soccer was really big in New Jersey which was an hour and a half from where I lived. I spent a lot more time in Jersey playing soccer than I did in New York. I spent a lot of time going to New York Red Bulls games when I was young.

"My idol was Thierry Henry so being able to watch him play and later signing with Red Bull and having that opportunity to train alongside him. It all came full circle for me."

Adams remembers the first time that he met Henry, "I was starstruck, I came into training one day and this was actually after he retired. He came back to the New York Red Bulls to do some training. I walked into the training ground and I saw 100 Puma boxes in a random locker in the dressing room and I was a bit confused.

"I asked Bradley Wright-Phillips who is that for and he said Thierry's here and he's training today. I was like no way that's my idol! I watched every Arsenal and Barcelona game when I was growing up and he was the person that I wanted to be.

"It turned out a little bit differently I'm not a striker so I'm not scoring as many goals but to have that opportunity to play with him and just learn from him and talk to him. What an amazing person and obviously an amazing career also but it was just great to gain that knowledge from someone of that calibre."

Adams' head coach at RBNY was Jesse Marsch who was also his manager at RB Leipzig and Leeds United. Marsch is now the boss of the Canadian men's national team and Adams would relish the chance to play them at some point in the future. "It's good for him. I think that he will help the team but I look forward to playing them that is for sure."

It was a tough season for Adams in the last campaign for Bournemouth where, due to injuries, he played just three times in the Premier League. However, he is now being eased back to playing regularly by USMNT boss Gregg Berhalter. In the most recent international friendlies, Adams did not feature in their 5-1 defeat against Colombia but he did come on as a substitute in the 1-1 draw with Brazil.

"I'm in a really good spot right now. We're building up to the first game (of the Copa America) against Bolivia. I'm just continuing to do all the right things that I can do to take care of myself but we're looking at more of a long-term plan. I'm going to play a big role in this tournament I know that. Then heading into pre-season healthy and just having a good pre-season will be good to get the new campaign started."

Looking back at the USMNT's recent games against Colombia and Brazil, Adams said, "They were two completely different games. The first game was a nice little learning curve for us. It taught us a lot about ourselves and about the opponents that we are going to face and how we need to prepare to make sure that we are ready.

"The game against Brazil was a lot more like us. The consistency is going to be a huge factor for us. We want to make sure that we are playing well. We will need the debth of our team because in some of these conditions in the hot weather no one is going to be able to play 90 minutes every single game so we are going to need the whole team."

Adams' USMNT teammate Weston McKennie of Juventus has been linked with a move to Aston Villa recently. The Bournemouth midfielder would welcome McKennie to return to English soccer after they were teammates at Leeds before. "I know that at the end of the season with him re-signing a new contract at Juventus it became a little bit sticky but I know that he can bring any team to another level. So I'll be happy for him whatever he decides to do and support it with whatever he needs but it would be great to go head-to-head with him in the Premier League."

The 2026 World Cup, which the United States is co-hosting, is on the horizon but Adams is not focusing on it just yet. "I barely know what I am going to do this afternoon. I don't think about what I am going to do in 2026. As most people know that have a kid you're living through their life so if he gets excited about 2026 now then I'll get excited about 2026. I'm more interested in changing diapers at the moment!"

It was Adams' first Father's Day as a dad last Sunday which he could spend with his son. "It was great, we were in Detroit for the field opening so we stayed the day after as well. It was just good to spend time with him. Any time I have the opportunity to spend the whole day with him I'm excited. I hope he looks back on these moments of us opening a mini-pitch and he knows that there are more important things in this World than himself or playing sports. Giving back is one of the most important things that you can do so it was a great first Father's Day."