Tyler Adams has a 'good day'! USMNT star showered with praise as 'very humble' midfielder steps up injury recovery with Bournemouth development side appearance

Adams signed for the Cherries for £23 million ($29m) in the summer following Leeds' relegation from the Premier League. But the United States midfielder has made just one appearance all season amid continued issues with his hamstring. However, Adams made significant steps in his recovery last week, playing 60 minutes for Bournemouth's development squad in a 5-0 win over Colchester United in the Professional Development League. After seeing him get his first minutes in over five months, manager Connell was full of nothing but praise for the American.

The Cherries youth team boss told afcbTV (via Bournemouth Echo): “Tyler is a lovely lad. Just from seeing him around the building every day, he’s very humble and very hard-working. Obviously he was probably our marquee signing last summer, so it was great to have him train with us and you could just tell straightaway he wanted to train well, get back and play some competitive football. It was great for our players to play with such a talent and such a big player, captain of the US national team as well. So it was great experience, especially for Lewis Brown playing next to him in midfield. Tyler came through it and looked fine, made some good passes and intercepted well. Hopefully it was a good day for him. It seemed that way and hopefully he can get back out there for our first team soon.”

Adams' only appearance this term came in a Carabao Cup fixture against Stoke back in September, with those 20 minutes on the field putting an end to a six-month spell on the sidelines. However, he aggravated his hamstring issue in that clash and required surgery which saw him laid off for another five months. Adams did make a return to the bench against Sheffield United on Saturday, and with an hour under his belt for the development squad, a return to action cannot be too far away.

That return is likely to be staggered, even despite those minutes last week, with Adams probably set for another spot on the bench in Bournemouth's next match. Andoni Iraola's side host Luton on Wednesday night in the Premier League, before they take a break from club football for international fixtures.