How Weston McKennie has learned to 'adapt' with USMNT's new-found 'savageness,' amid constant Juventus tests

There are few surprises when Weston McKennie's name is amongst the starters for Juventus on any given gameday, demonstrating an impressive sturdiness in a season of change. The midfielder had to navigate not one, but two managerial changes for club and country in the summer months as well as modifications to his on-field role, some challenges easier than others. The 26-year-old McKennie, though, has approached each situation with a newfound confidence, one that comes with age and nearly a decade of experience in Europe's top leagues.

"I feel like I'm a type of player that's able to adapt to a lot of different things and throughout my career," McKennie said in an interview with CBS Sports.

The last few months offer just one example of McKennie's durability. He was considered surplus to requirements when Thiago Motta took over as Juventus' manager over the summer, and he was excluded from preseason preparation as the search for a new club began. By the end of August, though, he had a new deal at Juventus and has now played 19 games for the Italian side this season. McKennie was able to complete the turnaround in part because he went through the same thing with Motta's predecessor, Massimiliano Allegri, a year earlier, and built a body of work he could cite in his favor if need be.

"Honestly, this summer, it didn't really get to me that much, obviously, because I know what type of season I had," McKennie said. "For me, as far as numbers and stats, I feel like I was at least, top two best midfielders here at Juventus last season, and that's not in an arrogant way or anything. That's just facts, if you want to put them out. With that being said, I wasn't feeling any type of way because I knew I had a great season and I was comfortable with it, and I was happy with it, and that's what ultimately matters for me."

For Juventus' Allegri last season, McKennie showcased a versatility that can only bolster a player's case to stick around in any team. The midfielder prefers playing as a No. 8 but slotted in as a right wing-back last season and reprised the role for Motta on Sunday in a 2-1 win at Monza, though on the left side. Sunday's game came with the added bonus of scoring the game's opening goal, but the success on the wings offered a reminder of his training in Schalke's academy and first team as a teenager.

"Starting out, especially in Germany, I played many different positions already -- I played center back, I played striker, I played midfield, [No.] 6, [No.] 8, [No.] 10, right back. I did it all," he said. "Last year, I started out the season in a right wing-back position, which was pretty fun, something I'm familiar with, and then this year, starting out in my true position, which obviously I love and am most comfortable with, because it allows me to release my energy and just run around back and forth and defend, attack, be in the box. So, I think the difference for me is obviously being in that role, I can potentially score more goals and be more involved in the attack."

McKennie's willingness to be versatile is a newfound feature of his game, demonstrating a level of professionalism that was key to his ability to work his way back into Juventus' lineup, even after Motta's summertime edict.

"At the end of the day, football's football," McKennie said. "It happens. Obviously, it happening every year kind of sucks, but it is what it is. Like I said before, I'm someone that, if that does happen to me, I can put my head down. I can go to work and just concentrate on that and do what I do best and just try and prove people wrong."

McKennie is one of several members of the U.S. men's national team playing at recognizable clubs in Europe, marking a clear evolution of the team's player pool since the days the USA's top talent were competing for the continent's middling clubs. That has not always translated to an upward trajectory for the USMNT, though – the second-youngest squad at the 2022 World Cup went to the round of 16, but that same group crashed out of the Copa America group stages a year-and-a-half later.

Last summer's disappointment led U.S. Soccer to hire Mauricio Pochettino in September, who is tasked with overseeing a culture change with the hopes of delivering a statement-making performance at the World Cup on home soil in 2026. Within a few months, McKennie said Pochettino has restored a sense of competition that was the USMNT's trademark decades ago, but has so far eluded the current generation despite the achievements they have made at the club level.

"I think honestly, [he] put the, kind of, savageness back into the team, that South American feeling, which is obviously going into tackles hard, not caring who you're playing against, maybe a little bit of dirtiness, I guess you could say, without contradicting the sport itself, but a little bit of dirtiness in the game and that grittiness that the USA is always known for," McKennie said about Pochettino.

"I think, obviously, since a lot of the players are playing in Europe now, play at decent clubs and big clubs, respectable clubs, it's very different than it was back then," he added. "All those guys, they had something to prove all the time, to these bigger teams and I think that's what is kind of missing right now. The fact that we have all these guys who are in Europe – we're there, we're doing it day in and day out and we're at respectable clubs and big clubs versus back then, they were trying to make it to those clubs so they're out there every game like, 'Yo, this is America. This is what we're known for. You guys doubt us and you guys say we're not good enough and whatnot,' and then we go out there and do what we do best. I think that'll be, definitely, something that he can help with and instill in us again."

As a seven-year veteran of the national team, McKennie is one of several players who will be tasked with ensuring the culture shift finally lines up with the talent he and his teammates obviously boast. The ebbs and flows of his club career have prepared him for the adjustments that need to be made to accomplish goals with the USMNT, including helping Pochettino feel welcomed into a group of players that rose up the national team's youth ranks together.

"We have all known each other for a very long time," McKennie said. "You're getting a coach that's coming in that wants to, obviously, integrate with us and we want to integrate with him, his staff and make everyone feel like a big family and obviously we want to win games, but we also know that we're not going to have the same amount of time as we do with our club teams to be able to do that, so you have to make the most of it by learning, maybe, faster and getting the hang of it faster so obviously being a player that can adapt and learning from the many different roles that I've played at club level, it makes it much easier to adapt to a new coach as well."

McKennie's sustained success at the club and international level has also allowed him to pursue a new passion, launching McKennie's Magical Youth Mission, a foundation focused on children in the foster care system and orphanages. The foundation assists children in Italy and the U.S., predominantly in Miami and Dallas, where McKennie has home bases. He was inspired by his own family to help out, particularly his nephew.

"I have a close liking and [am] drawn to orphanages and kids just because I have a big family," McKennie said in an interview on CBS Sports Golazo Network. "I have eight nephews and nieces and one of the things that inspired me for it was my oldest nephew, because he kind of grew up without a father. My sister was the one raising him by herself and just being that figure for him and that motivator and inspiration for him to do what he's doing now, I have a real connection to it. My goal, hopefully when this is completely going at full speed, is to be serving a lot of underprivileged communities and orphanages around the country in the states and also over here in Italy and hopefully spread it around the world, eventually."

McKennie's Magical Youth Mission is still in its early days, but the player and his team have already made an impact in several communities. One of McKennie's first events with the foundation took place over the summer, when he visited children at Miami Bridge Youth and Family Services. The USMNT standout fostered some genuine relationships that day and still maintains contact with the kids he met.

"Wes came and talked to a bunch of kids, signed a bunch of balls and just brightened their day," Kiley Cosentino, a manager of client services who works with McKennie's agent and pitches in with the foundation, told CBS Sports. "His character literally just made them realize even someone at this caliber really wants to talk to [them] and mentor [them] and he even speaks to some of them, to this day, that need someone there for them. A lot of the stories that these kids were telling him were really sad and disheartening to hear and for him to be there and to have a shoulder to lean on and also for him, at his caliber, for them to be able to talk to him and also understand his story and where he comes from as well, it really made them open up. Towards the end of the event, they were literally kicking the ball around with him and showing him their drawings and the meanings behind their drawings."

The foundation has stepped up its reach during the holiday season, donating 500 Thanksgiving dinners and gift cards to children at Miami Bridge and Uplift Education, a free public charter school in Dallas. McKennie also gifted children with toys and winter apparel at an event in Turin last week. McKennie also plans to visit Miami Bridge again to build upon the connections he made over the summer

"We chose Miami Bridge to keep that connection with the kids and let them know that Wes is still here for them," Cosentino said. "He's going to come back in town and see a lot of them, if they're still in the foster care system."

Cosentino said McKennie's thoughtfulness in his interactions with children through McKennie's Magical Youth Mission is matched by his willingness to do the work behind the scenes, even as he balances the busy schedule that comes with being a top-tier professional soccer player.

"He's really optimistic, really chill," she said about McKennie. "He's down to do almost anything if it means providing for the community and helping out in any way that he can, especially with his schedule. He is constantly traveling, constantly doing marketing deals but he always finds the time to sit down and take those calls that are necessary, especially for his foundation."