Tyler Adams has revealed that himself and Brenden Aaronson "don't take a day off from being competitive" and claimed that people have "never really respected" football players from America until recently.
Adams and Aaronson have quickly become an instrumental part of Jesse Marsch's side since arriving this summer. The pair have both been almost ever-present when available since signing in the summer.
The US influence at Leeds extends beyond the pitch, with the San Francisco 49ers' investment arm - 49ers Enterprises - currently holding a minority share of the club, with a full takeover expected to follow this year.
On the field though, Adams has revealed that it is the American spirit to succeed and be competitive that will help to drive the country's footballing reputation forward. The midfielder opened up on the friendly rivalry that he has with Aaronson in everything they do and how that helps spur each other on.
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“Yeah absolutely," he told Soccer AM when asked if he and Aaronson are competitive with one another. "It doesn’t just have to be on the football pitch, whether we’re on the golf course or wherever we are – we don’t take a day off from being competitive.
“I think that’s the culture of America as well, we’re just competitive people. Football is obviously growing in our country and we’re competitive because we want to push the sport forward. People have never really respected American footballers, but I think we’re now trending in that direction which is important.
"I think the World Cup was probably a good platform for us to put ourselves on the map, I think people could finally watch that and say: ‘America always had that grit and that personality, but they never had the technical footballers that can hang with some of the top teams in the world or top countries in the world.’”
“I hope after the World Cup they can see that we’re moving in that direction.”
Adams captained America in Qatar and revealed just how proud he was to have been chosen by his fellow players to wear the armband.
He added: “A huge honour, when I was told I was going to be captain, it’s something that I’ve worked my entire career for. I’ve always felt that I’ve been a natural leader just showing by example, going out there competing and wanting to win games.
“But knowing that your teammates picked you to represent our country was something special for me. I knew in that scenario it wasn’t going to be a huge burden on me because we have always supported each other and the team, whoever wore the armband we would support – but it was still a special moment for me and I take a lot of pride in that.”
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