By Jonty Banks

17th Mar, 2023 | 9:40am

Phil Hay shares Tyler Adams injury update with Leeds United hoping for return against Arsenal

Leeds United are quietly hopeful that Tyler Adams will return to the squad to face Arsenal after the international break, according to Phil Hay.

Javi Gracia revealed (16 March) that Adams had been omitted from the USMNT squad and was set to see a specialist after picking up a hamstring injury during training this week.

The club are yet to put a timescale on the injury, but speaking on The Phil Hay Show, The Athletic journalist shared that the injury didn’t appear to be a “huge concern”.

“The answer was when we went to Leeds was that he [Adams] had suffered a small hamstring strain,” Hay said (Friday 17 March, 1:30).

“He wouldn’t be fit enough for Wolves this weekend and wouldn’t be fit enough to go away with the USA, who have got Nations League games against Granada and El Salvador.

“But Adams won’t be part of it, he will stay behind and Leeds will try as best they can to get him fit for the other side of the international break. But it isn’t totally clear how serious it is, I think the indication is that it’s not particularly or wasn’t a huge concern, but it was enough to keep him out of the weekend and to stop him heading over the water.

Hay later added (4:00): “I think the club will be quietly hoping that two weeks of recuperation as opposed to heading to the United States for two friendlies will give him what he needs to have a chance for the Arsenal game on the other side of the gap.

“But it will depend entirely on how he develops and how his rehabilitation goes.”

Promising

Whenever a player goes down with a hamstring injury, let alone a player of Adams’ importance, fears are that the player could be out for months.

However, it seems like Leeds may have got away with one here. A minor hamstring strain doesn’t spell disaster for the club, and considering the international break is on the horizon, the U.S. captain could only miss one Premier League game.

It will still be a frustration to Gracia that his key man is missing for possibly the biggest game of his reign. Considering the victories that Leeds’ relegation rivals have picked recently, the showdown against Julen Lopetegui’s side is a massive six-pointer.

Missing Adams in the middle of the park will be a sore miss, but with Weston McKennie and Marc Roca waiting in the wings to step up, the club aren’t short on alternative options.

All corners of the Elland Road faithful will hope that Hay’s assessment of the injury is correct because if so, the club have got extremely lucky.

In other Leeds United news, the club may now face a losing battle to keep their star player at Elland Road beyond the summer transfer window

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