FOXBOROUGH, MA— New England Revolution II Forward Jordan Adebayo-Smith is highly anticipating success in the 2023 MLS NEXT Pro campaign.
Following the release of the 2023 MLS NEXT Pro schedule on March 14th, 2023, I had the privilege to interview newly signed forward Jordan Adebayo-Smith regarding the upcoming season.
Image Courtesy of Revolution II
On December 8th, 2022, Jordan signed a first team contact with the New England Revolution II. Since his signing, Jordan has been providing stellar performances on the pitch with SEVEN total goals in 7 preseason matches. When discussing how the Revolution II have been playing in preseason, Jordan stated, “I feel like the style of play compliments the way I like to play… we like to play out and make runs in behind and I feel like my attributes will help the team score goals and I think that the goal is to score as many goals as possible.”.
Jordan stated that the 10-day trip to Florida helped the team formulate bonds and create scenarios to learn everyone’s tendencies as a whole. “Our trip up to Florida helped create a bond amongst the group and I feel like we needed to learn each other’s tendencies, habits and personalities and those will help throughout the whole season.”
The Revolution II finished their preseason in Florida with a record of 0W-1D-2L (-6GD) and have since gone 2W-1D-1L (+4 GD) since their return from Florida. This trip left the squad a plethora of knowledge in regard to their team structure and focused in on how to obtain the necessary results.
Jordan celebrates 1 of his 3 goals in a preseason match versus Gold Star FC Detroit on March 17th, 2023. Image Courtesy of New England Revolution II.
Jordan, who had played from 2018-2021 in England, traded the European style for the United States following the end of his contract for Sutton United in 2021. At the end of the 2021 season, he joined the Tampa Bay Rowdies of the USL Championship and played in their squads ranks for 2 seasons, from 2021-2022 respectively. During the 2022 season, Jordan was loaned to RBNY II and stated clear differences amongst the various teams that he had previously played for.
“This group is different as in other squads as I was learning off of more experienced players everyday whereas here, there are more younger players that look up to the older players and there is more of a focus on the technical side”.
Jordan Adebayo-Smith juggles a ball prior to a match. Image Courtesy of New England Revolution II.
When discussing how he’s been adapting to the change of style, Jordan stated that, “Because I was new to the team, learning through video on how the wingers like to move in regard to link-up play or off the ball movement, I feel like it’s helped get us goals and I feel individually and as a group we have taken that into the season to score more goals for the squad”.
“In training, we like to keep the intensity high, but if you watch our games, we like to be calm on the ball, but when we lose the ball, we try to counter press and show the intensity we have in training. It’s been a good contrast and the tempo definitely effects how we play as a unit.”
goals on goals on goals pic.twitter.com/giS0wACuRy
— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) March 17, 2023
Jordan, who has been on a goal scoring hot streak homed in on how he manages to keep his focus on the upcoming season. “Staying focused is how I succeed the best. Especially If I miss a chance… I always tell myself that I’m going to get one today… so re-assuring myself that if the next chance comes, I’ll make sure to tuck it away or if I get the opportunity to support my teammates I will so that I’m not overwhelmed over little mistakes.”.
The focus is strong amongst the group, as Jordan stated that, “The goal is to win as many games as possible. It is always goal number one… Winning the MLS Cup and being top goal scorer are the two major goals for me this season.” In regard to scoring goals, Jordan stated, “I don’t want to set a limit as I want to score as many goals as possible.”.
A preseason W on this snowy Saturday ☃️#NERevsII beat CF Montreal’s U-23s by a score of 4-2 this afternoon with goals from Marcos Dias, Jack Burkhardt, Jordan Adebayo-Smith, and Malcolm Fry ? pic.twitter.com/EHLRuulkae
— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) March 11, 2023
Jordan, a player who is versatile in the attack stated that he is more comfortable playing striker than any other position. Jordan stated, ” I feel striker is the most comfortable, but I like to dribble… so, I can play on the wing, but primarily I’d prefer to play striker.”
The Revolution II roster which is stacked with depth and fantastic talent across the entire roster is continuing to grow day-by-day. When discussing players to look out for, Jordan stated, “I feel like the whole squad really stands out… I will say a young player, I think Peyton Miller… He’s very young, very technical, I feel like he’s an exciting left back / left winger to watch this season.”. Miller, A U-16 player has represented the USMNT recently in the U-16 Football Federations Cup back in November of 2022.
Peyton Miller (2007 – Unionville, Conn.) was called up to the U.S. Under-16 Youth National Team ahead of the U-16 Football Federations Cup in November of 2022. Image Courtesy of New England Revolution II.
“From the first day I got here, the quality of play from the academy to the second team was very good… and it shows in the first team that we have players that are good enough to show that week in and week out.”, stated Jordan.
All smiles ? pic.twitter.com/FyHJlKKWMV
— New England Revolution II (@NERevolution2) March 1, 2023
In regard to the player’s recent form and the possibility of a move to the first team, Jordan stated, “Enjoying the moment is the main goal… If I get the call up to the first team I’d take the chance, but right now it’s just enjoying where I’m at right now and scoring more goals to add to the tally which would help me into the season. I don’t want to be stuck on if I’m going to go up or not as it would affect my mental status.”
In regard to future goals, Jordan stated that his goal as a kid was to succeed on the international level. Jordan, who can represent the United States, Nigeria, and England stated that, ” My whole aim as a kid was to play in the World Cup. I don’t have a preference on where I play, but I’d be honored to represent any of those countries.”. He stated that growing up, He wore the #14 kit due to his idol Thierry Henry and he hopes to one day replicate what Henry had done across the football world.
Looks like Jordan Adebayo-Smith found the back of the net again, also a look at construction in Gillette #NERevs pic.twitter.com/rCtXa8TOjO
— Sam Minton (@Sam_Minton22) February 26, 2023
When Discussing games to look forward to, there is no game that stands out more for Jordan Adebayo-Smith than a matchup versus his former club. “I’m looking forward to playing against Red Bull.” stated Jordan. “I feel like there will be a lot of intensity into that game and I feel like it will be a good one.”. With a rivalry between the two clubs dating back to the 2000s, the same feeling stands for the second teams for the respective MLS clubs.
For Revolution II fans, the team’s general admission tickets go on sale on Friday, March 24th beginning at $10 per match or $98 for a full-season plan including all 14 home games. Revolution Season Members have access to discounted Revolution II tickets. Fans can visit Revolutionsoccer.net/tickets for more information.
The New England Revolution II will kick off their 2023 MLS NEXT Pro campaign on the road as the squad travels to face Atlanta United II on March 26th at 7:30 p.m. All MLS, MLS NEXT Pro matches will be available through the new MLS Streaming Service on the Apple TV app.
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