I don't think the World Cup is quite the showroom it used to be though when it comes to helping players get discovered and signed. Maybe for some of the MLSers. But I think, regarding most of the ones already in Europe, they were already in the sights of these clubs before the tournament began.
I don't see tons of our players making big moves, particularly since so many are already at big clubs. I do think Tyler Adams may get himself on the radar of bigger clubs than Leeds, and I could see bigger clubs looking at Timmy Weah. Yunus Musah seems like another who could be on the radar of Premier League squads. But other guys who you'd think of as showing well on the big stage at this tournament (Matt Turner, Sergino Dest, Weston McKennie) are already at big clubs. I agree with you. It felt like fewer USMNT'ers made moves after the 2014 World Cup compared to previous cycles, but I haven't looked up data to see how true that is. I was also going to make a crass joke about none of our USMNT players getting moves abroad after the 2018 World Cup, but that felt too soon.
With the state of global communications, the internet, streaming, etc....The big clubs have their eyes on the players that have the potential to help them already. In the past The World Cup was truly a showpiece tournament for players from around the world. Nowadays, footage and information is much more readily, and easily available.
I don't think any new players will make the "big move." What the event has done is confirm for "big clubs" what they think they already know about Musah, Adams, and those guys. Gives them another data point. What it probably does is continue to give Euro clubs encouragement to scout and sign young Americans. The "next Tyler Adams" is out there for them to find. I will say that Walker Zimmerman is one guy that should be playing in Europe. Other than his bad moment against Wales, he's been solid. Why doesn't some club in a 2nd tier league............come for him? If I was in Holland, Belgium, Portugal, etc. make a call. He does get paid very well in MLS. Maybe he's actually priced himself out of that kind of move.
I am very surprised to see how divisive Walker Zimmermann here is here, and thats fine. But man.......its like people have never watched Wolverhampton, Southampton, even Aston Villa this year. Zimm would be a visible upgrade of probably at least five EPL teams. Even Leeds......good lord Leeds central defenders are overrated and not good. Lloriente and Cooper especially. Zimmermann is of the cloth of the old Gooachenegra Demerit defender, and thats not a bad thing. Even a deep pocketed Championship club like QPR or Sunderland (yes, theyre loaded now) could make a move and benefit from his upgrade
What's really weird is that as Zimmerman's first MLS contract was expiring, he went on a European tour. No interest. The closest he came to interest was apparently with Viking in Norway. [And let's be honest, that would have been an awesome match.] So he re-signed with MLS, and its been an upward trajectory ever since. If I'm a Championship club, I would have watched that England/USMNT match, and thought........................who's that guy? He's a beast! He can handle this league no problem. I mean, hell, Auston Trusty went to the Championship and has become a big hit right away. Zimmerman right now is a better CB than Trusty. Don't tell me Zimmerman can't be successful if he goes to Reading or a club like that. Fans on this board seem to think the only clubs that exist are the big clubs in the top 5 leagues.
I really think that too, theres the sense "oh theyre not gonna make it with a europa conference or above team, that means they cant play in the EPL". Which is just silly. Its strange because lots of these guys I know have been watching since the Fulham Bocanegra, Jay Demerit Watford days of yore watching lower table EPL quality, and knowing exactly what that is. Then concluding Zimmermann is not at that level. Just all around strange.
The biggest issue might be that Zimmerman currently makes $2.3 million a year in guaranteed compensation. That's a helluva salary in many leagues. If he went to Reading (just the team I mentioned above), he would be the highest paid player there. So it would take a substantial transfer fee, and then you'd have to make it financially worth his while. I do think many fans underestimate MLS' current place in the world market.
I've been getting posts from Leeds supporters groups show up in my Facebook feed. The Leeds supporters have been worried that Adams is pricing himself out of Leeds. They also like Musah and Weah, though not as direct Adams replacements obviously.
Leeds and Marsch just gotta give him the Declan Rice "Bank of England" transfer fee requirement. Like, if someone bites on 125 mil you kinda gotta but make it an absolutely obscene price to imply hes not for sale. Hes a critical node of Leeds. Leeds have never forgotten about a player like Kalvin Phillips quicker than they have due to Tyler Adams
Adams has been our best player but a big move for him is tricky. a. He is already at a pretty substantial club which just payed a pretty significant fee for him. He came there from a champions league club in a power 5 league. Only move left is to a really elite club and though i think he has peaked interest there I think that gets a little interesting. He still has a couple question marks so you have to find one of a small number of clubs that need his specific skill set because he needs a specific set up to be at this best. The two i think people should be drooling over and could move up are Weah and Musah. Weah can't seem to get off the bench at his club and when I watch him play I don't get that. He just things that like he would be effective for so many teams and I can't imagine it would cost too much to get him. Musah- Just turned 20 and is at a club that is a selling club. I think people will be lining up to take a look at him. It only comes down to how much he is valued at and how big he can/should do. Lots of others could get a move. I do wonder if if Sargent might be able get a move to someplace he can be a center forward on a regular basis?
Adams is really getting a lot of notice 🇺🇸Tyler Adams vs Irán 🇮🇷. Un pulpo. pic.twitter.com/1xOqOoMBzu— Tomiconcina 🎙️ (@Tomiconcina1) November 30, 2022
i think musah will almost certainly move by summer at the latest, but others- like weah, for example- id be happy if lille used him more regularly (and that his health/fitness allows for that). wes was likely to move regardless, as was pulisic. obviously adams is borderline dominating on the biggest stage, but hes been pretty damn impressive all season so i dont know how much interest has risen strictly due to the world cup. the only other guy i see making a substantial move up (to say a top half top 4 team) is jedi. to start a rumor based on an old rumor there was talk about city being interested in him last season. im not sure if youd want to go into a rotation like that, though.
Adams is a spectacular defender, but his distribution is currently limited for an elite level club. Someone may want to pick him up for sure just based on defense, but a good number of elite clubs will look past because he's not going to be able to play the offensive role they want. The irony here is that Red Bull Leipzig shouldn't be one of those clubs -- they have neither the payroll nor the philosophy to demand it -- but they were.
Pulisic will have helped his case some. Maybe Zimmerman if he wants to move to Europe. Otherwise I don’t see anyone moving in January. Adams may go for a big contract in the summer
My two favorite players on this team--the two that I would pick and try to sign if I were forming a team--would be Pulisic and Adams, and it's difficult for me to decide the order. But there are a couple of other players of ours that have real quality, guys like Musah and McKennie and Dest.
Turner has earned some potential interest no? Any chance Arsenal might allow him to go on loan or get a few league matches in the second half of the season?
I’ll say it.... If Chelsea, Arsenal, Man Utd, Man City, Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Real Madrid, Barcelona, PSG, etc. don’t make a bid for Tyler Adams, that’s just anti-American bias. But I don’t know if I see a lot of other big movements. And that’s not to knock our players. It’s saying that our players are already playing at big clubs. In fact, I still hope that Pulisic leaves Chelsea, and he goes somewhere where he will be “the man” for that team. Maybe Musah could get an upgrade, but it’s not like Valencia is chopped liver. I could see him doing well at Inter Milan, or similar level. I could see clubs making a bid for Turner, but he just got there at Arsenal. I don’t see him leaving just yet. Jedi would be a good pick up for a lot of clubs, and there’s no way that I see him going back down to the Championship in the next five years. Zimmerman, maybe, could make an argument, but he’s too old at 29. It’s not even worth it. Same with Ream. Maybe CCV will get an upgrade, but that’ll be because people have been following him already at Celtic, not what he’s doing at the WC. Sargent isn’t really cut out for the PL. That’s not so much his fault as it’s the fault that he’s not good enough to be a top 10 starting striker in the PL, and he’s good enough to be a bottom 10 striker in the PL, but that means he won’t ever get any service. Personally, I think his future would be a move back to the Bundesliga. Weah might be one. But I think his level is still in France or Germany. I don’t really see him in the PL. But I could be wrong. Either way, I would like to see him go somewhere that values him as a starting forward or winger, and not a rotational utility guy. Finally, the issue is that normally we are talking about MLS players who make this big jump after the World Cup. In this regard, no, I don’t think Shaq Moore, Cristian Roldan, Jordan Morris, etc. have done enough to get a contract at a bigger club in Europe. Maybe, Jesus Ferreira could have done so, but he’s not been playing. That said, he probably benefits from the whole US team playing well and his consistent MLS performances at such a young age. Although, I think it hurts him, when people see someone like Haji Wright start over him and be so subpar.
I think Dest has actually raised his value the most in this cup. He’s having a monster tournament. He’s answered questions about his 1v1 defending, has been very instrumental to our possession and has a signature final-third moment with his headed assist vs Iran. I think Bayern eventually comes calling. Pulisic has been outstanding for us. But I don’t think it’s much different than what technical directors already think of him. He’s just too expensive and while Chelsea doesn’t love him, they still need him until further notice. Musah is striking on the pitch. His combination of athleticism and ball-security is truly rare. But he’ll need a system that has both a regista and trequartista because he’s pedestrian in the money thirds. But his ability to break a high press with the dribble is too irresistible for most clubs especially considering his age. He’ll get a considerable move. You can see Adams doing this every weekend for Leeds. He’s one of the best pure destroyers on the planet. He’ll get a move up another rung, but I don’t think he goes further nor do I think he becomes a Casemiro-like club stalwart. He just isn’t good enough on the ball and his size prevents him from shouldering-off pivot-9s like Kane and Lewandowski, which is a task he’ll be required to do since he’s not a regista. Tim Weah might be coveted for his work-rate, pace and finishing, but there are three problems that have always existed that persist: 1) not clean enough in possession 2) can’t beat a decent defender 1v1 on the dribble 3) abysmal with his back to goal and only average in the air, tampering his prospects as a 9. Someone will want his gegenpressing qualities in Europe though, so it’s hard to imagine his role at Lille perpetuates. McKennie is kind of an odd duck. He’s a big play waiting to happen but you don’t want him on the ball much. He’s better out wide but he’s not a winger. While he heals like Wolverine, durability concerns are real. But there’s just too much quality and athletic upside to say his value has been hurt any by this cup. Antonee Robinson is what he is. One of the most physically dominating outside backs in the world who just needs a tad more skill. Looks like a PL lifer who may sniff the Champions League for a short time. Aaronson is a pressing machine, nothing more and nothing less. He’s great on the break and decisive in the box, but he’s not creative for a winger or an advanced midfielder. Leeds and Leeds-like will always be his ceiling. Walker Zimmerman is too old for a big move. And getting benched in favor of a no-upside guy in CCV hurts your value. I really like him and he’s no worse than I perceived him to be coming in, but he’ll be too expensive for a Euro side that would actually need him.
I agree. It's no longer the days of Yedlin coming out of nowhere and catching the eyes of Euro clubs on this stage. All our players are scouted regularly on a weekly basis. But funny enough the player who might see some benefit is the one who is known most. Pulisic. As there's a legit argument he has deserved more of a chance at Chelsea, there were questions around has he lost a step and that he has outplayed his Chelsea counterparts in Qatar. Combined with about 18 months left on his contract. That being said, clubs like Man U, Newcastle, Juve, Milan have been rumored to be interested since the summer.