United States

USMNT's Luca de la Torre 'has grown tremendously' since 2022 World Cup

Published Nov. 13, 2023 7:57 p.m. ET

When Luca de la Torre was named to the United States' 26-man World Cup roster just over a year ago, it was mostly on the strength of his performances during qualifying matches. De la Torre started two of the Americans' final four contests on the road to Qatar 2022, both wins. But he was barely playing last November for his Spanish club team, Celta Vigo, which he had joined just a few months earlier.

The San Diego native was very much a depth piece in coach Gregg Berhalter's squad. Even with one member of Berhalter's locked in "MMA" midfield of Weston McKennie, Yunus Musah and Tyler Adams not 90-minutes fit — McKennie had recently returned from injury and was subbed out of all four of the Americans World Cup matches — De la Torre was one of just four U.S. field players not to log a single minute at the main event.

A year later, the 25-year-old De la Torre is in a much different spot.

Shortly after returning from the World Cup, the San Diego native nailed down a starting job with Celta and never let it go:

This season he's stayed a lineup mainstay under a different coach: in June, former Real Madrid and Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez replaced Carlos Carvalhal at the helm of the La Liga club.

"Over these last 12 months you can see the dividends that are being paid in that he's in La Liga, he's a full-time starter, he's playing under a great manager," U.S. assistant coach B.J. Callaghan said of De la Torre Monday from Austin, Texas, where the USMNT will face regional rival Trinidad and Tobago Thursday in the first leg of the CONCACAF Nations League quarterfinals — matches that double as qualifiers for the 2024 Copa America, which will be hosted by the U.S. next summer.

"And he's, for me, someone who's grown tremendously, and we believe is a really valuable piece to to our to our men's national team."

De la Torre has a golden opportunity to prove it this month. With Adams out until at least February following his second hamstring surgery this year, there is a gaping hole in the center of Berhalter's lineup. That puts De la Torre in position to capitalize on his steady showings in a top four European circuit and earn more playing time with the USMNT.

Gio Reyna was deployed in the middle in the first half of last month's 3-1 loss to Germany before being replaced by De La Torre for the second. But Reyna was back in his usual spot on the wing a few days later as the Americans routed Ghana, and with Tim Weah also unavailable this month because of hamstring trouble, he seems likely to stay out wide against T&T.

Johnny Cardoso started in Adams' spot against the Black Stars, but Cardoso withdrew from the current USMNT roster Monday after suffering an ankle injury. There are other options to replace Adams, including Malik Tillman, who was ruled out of both October friendlies by a minor ailment.

But De la Torre has as strong a case as anyone to go from the beginning on Thursday, something he's done just twice for his country in 2023. And while he's not a like-for-like replacement for defensive specialist Adams, his highly technical, two-way game provides more balance than the more attack-minded Reyna and Tillman.

"His versatility I think is a great tool for him," Callaghan said. "It speaks to why he becomes so valuable once he gets into a team and a coach can realize the different aspects and variability that he can bring to different game plans."

Winning managers' trust hasn't always been easy for De la Torre. He moved away from Southern California at 15 to join Fulham's academy, but never really became a regular in England — even with the Cottagers in the second tier for all but one of his seven years there — before leaving for Dutch side Heracles in 2020.

"When I was 22 and I left Fulham, I had maybe 10 first appearances in my career," De la Torre said Monday. "Now I've played two seasons in Holland, one in Spain, I'm more established now in Spain. It's been a really nice journey."

The trip is far from over, though. Despite his understated demeanor on and off the field, there's plenty more De la Torre wants to accomplish. After getting his first taste of a World Cup last fall, stepping on the field at the 2026 tournament on home soil must be near the top of the list.

"[He has] a quiet self-confidence but being around him, we know how driven he is," Callaghan said. "He's a player that's taken some risks in his career, because he believes in himself."

Those gambles increasingly have been paying off.

"I feel like every year I'm improving," De la Torre said. "I'm getting better. This is just another step."

Doug McIntyre is a soccer writer for FOX Sports. Before joining FOX Sports in 2021, he was a staff writer with ESPN and Yahoo Sports and he has covered United States men's and women's national teams at multiple FIFA World Cups. Follow him on Twitter @ByDougMcIntyre.