TEMPE, Arizona — United States midfielder Yunus Musah has credited AC Milan manager Ruben Amorim for his uptick in form with the Rossoneri, which has led to a recall to the national team.
Musah told ESPN that Amorim first reached out to him via text message prior to preseason to tell him he wanted him to stay with Milan and would be an important part of his plans during the upcoming campaign. Given that Musah was coming off a difficult loan spell with Serie A side Atalanta the previous season, and wasn’t quite sure where he stood with Milan, he didn’t want to read too much into it, but soon found Amorim to be true to his word.
“I thought maybe [he was] just saying this like other managers just to keep you there at the club,” Musah said poolside at the U.S. team hotel prior to a friendly against Mexico. “But actually as preseason was going on, I saw that I was playing a lot, he was talking to me a lot, and it was true. And I started the season, played a lot of minutes, a lot of starts. And then now coming to national team as well, being back here. So it’s been a great start to the season, having managers believe in me again. As a player, that’s what you want really, managers believing in you and letting you play.”
So far this season Musah has appeared in all five of Milan’s league matches, logging 329 minutes. As a consequence, Musah was recalled to the USMNT for the first time since March of 2025, a period which included being left off the U.S. World Cup roster.
Musah started the first match against Peru — a 4-1 win — and was a substitute in the ensuing two matches, a 4-2 win over Chile and an impressive 3-0 shutout of Mexico, looking lively in the latter encounter.
“It felt like something I deserve from the start of the season that I’ve had, so I think it’s well deserved on my part.” Musah said about the call-up. “I’ve been performing really well for a big club, Milan, and I think it makes sense and I’m happy to be back.”
Musah said he blamed himself for the difficulties he had with Atalanta, and appeared to be of two minds in terms of how he looks back on the experience. At one point, he said the campaign was “a waste on the bench,” but then upon further reflection said he learned a lot and used his time on the practice field to sharpen certain aspects of his game.
“There was a good midfield [in Atalanta], so I learned a lot of things; how to position myself, playing with just two in the middle as well, constantly being available,” Musah said. “So little things I tweaked in my game, like my positioning and my body shape. Sometimes knowing what areas to take risks.”
While he said Atalanta was a “great team” he said he learned that he needed to “do my research” on a club before making a move. He also said he wouldn’t go somewhere on loan again, adding he sensed “a different vibe” when being on loan as opposed to being with the club to which he’s contracted. All of those lessons were learned the hard way given that it led to his exclusion from the World Cup, which was a shock given the significant role he played with the U.S. side at the 2022 World Cup, when he started every game.
“Not going through the World Cup was tough, and as the season went on, I could sense it because I wasn’t coming into any camps and I wasn’t playing at Atalanta as well,” he said. “So yeah, it looked like it was going to be a summer holiday for me.”
Musah said he went on vacation with this wife and daughter to Ghana and Zanzibar. In particular, he enjoyed the food and Zanzibar’s beaches. All the while, he didn’t watch a single minute of the World Cup.
“Literally I wasn’t on social media. I wasn’t on my phone much. I was literally just outside with the locals in Ghana and Zanzibar enjoying my summer,” he said. “And then the last week of my holiday, I started training a bit to get ready for preseason in Milan.”
Musah added this is how he usually spends his offseason, so unplugging wasn’t a struggle.
“I always like to disconnect. So that’s me every summer,” he said.
One summer when he disconnected was in 2025 when he asked Mauricio Pochettino that he be left off the Gold Cup roster. His daughter, Yumna, had just been born, and he was coming off a difficult season with Milan where his playing time plummeted down the stretch.
“The reason was that it was a long season ended,” Musah said about missing the Gold Cup. “The last few months were really intense and tough with the fans and the whole situation at the club. I just had my daughter as well. So yeah, I wanted to prioritize staying with the family. Very important moments in the growth of my child.
“[It’s a] pivotal time that I didn’t want to miss out on because the Gold Cup was going to be a very long camp and I wasn’t going to get pretty much any break after that and then straight into the season again and stuff.”
Musah is still finding his way back with the USMNT, but continued success with Milan should ensure he stays in the USMNT reckoning.
