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By JAKE NISSE Published: 22: 00 AEDT, 2 April 2025 | Updated: 22: 03 AEDT, 2 April 2025 View comments Though he lives and plays in Bournemouth, America is very much a factor in Justin Kluivert's life. The Cherries have flourished under Texan billionaire Bill Foley, who bought the club in December 2022, while the attacker plays in front of US men's national team captain Tyler Adams, who keeps the team ticking from his defensive midfield role. Even Hollywood star Michael B. Jordan owns a small slice of the club. That American influence - especially Foley - has helped buoy Bournemouth to its current midtable position (just four points behind fifth-place Man City), and dreaming of European football with nine games to go. 'It's beautiful to see Bournemouth growing, ' Kluivert told Mail Sport in an exclusive interview. 'You know, we have an American owner also, and he has a lot of ambitions, he's a very ambitious person. 'And you see the players that he bought, what he's doing with the club, and the position that we're at at the moment, you see that. So it's beautiful to be a part of this beautiful journey. ' It was only three years ago that Bournemouth, following their second promotion to the Premier League, were intent on scrapping their way to top-flight survival. Justin Kluivert is Bournemouth's top scorer as the club aims for European football American billionaire Bill Foley bought the club in late 2022 and the club has thrived under him With leading scorer Kluivert now on board - joining the likes of Antoine Semenyo, Dango Outtara and Evanilson, who joined last summer - Bournemouth have turned into one of the league's more attractive attacking sides under manager Andoni Iraola, and one who will wave the flag of the Premier League this summer. Alongside Manchester United, Everton and West Ham, Bournemouth will jet to the United States for the Premier League Summer Series. The sides will travel to Atlanta, Chicago and East Rutherford, New Jersey - just a short drive from New York - where Kluivert hopes that his teammate Adams will show him around. The games will only serve as preseason preparations, but Bournemouth's summer presence in the USA for a second straight summer (last year was not an official Premier League tour) shows the progress that title insurance baron Foley has made in the South Coast and beyond. Kluivert deemed the 80-year-old Foley 'a really down to earth person' who 'loves the club' before touching on the growing American influence on the Premier League (10 of the league's 20 teams are currently owned by Americans). 'The football is growing even in America, and that's lovely to see, ' Kluivert said. 'And a lot of American owners at the moment, they're also in the Premier League, they just love the club, for sure. And I see that back with Bill Foley, our owner, how he treats the club, and the ambition that that he has is just beautiful to a club as Bournemouth, to make it grow to what it is now and to what it's going to become. It's just incredible. ' Kluivert's move to Bournemouth ahead of last season didn't just represent his completed odyssey through all of Europe's top five leagues, following stints at RB Leipzig, Valencia, Nice and Roma, who had been his parent club since 2018 before his move to England. It was also a reunion with Adams, whom he played with in Germany during the 2020-21 season. Kluivert spoke exclusively to Mail Sport ahead of the Premier League Summer Series He's been reunited with American midfielder Tyler Adams in Bournemouth The 26-year-old American has been plagued by injuries at Bournemouth (and prior), with back and hamstring issues costing him most of last season. A back surgery this past summer then kept him out until late October. Since then, however, he's established himself as a mainstay of an ascendant Cherries side and showed why his current club were willing to pay more than $25. 5 million (£20 million) to Leeds for his services. 'I knew him already, because we played with each other in Germany [at RB Leipzig]. I knew how good he was, and I knew he came here with a lot of injuries, so he didn't play at the beginning a lot, but I knew what he could [do], so I was I was so happy when he was fully fit, ' Kluivert said, after calling Adams 'a real captain. ' 'Because I knew what he could bring to the team, and he shows that now. So that's a big asset for us. And I think with a player like him, we can really grow as a club, as a team. And yeah, that's what we're showing at the moment. ' Beyond Foley, Adams and this summer's preseason tour, there's another thing tying Kluivert to America: the 2026 World Cup. The attacker was not involved in last summer's Euros and spent six years in international exile after his senior debut for the Netherlands in 2018. But after being recalled by Ronald Koeman in November, and again last month for the Nations League quarterfinals against Spain, he believes his form will carry into next year's highly-anticipated tournament, which is set to be held in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Kluivert started both legs against Spain and provided an assist in the first match before the Dutch ultimately lost on penalties. Bournemouth played two preseason matches in the USA last year, including one against Wrexham in California Kluivert started both of the Netherlands' Nations League matches against Spain last month 'I wasn't happy with [being left off the team for years], of course, but that motivated me to work even harder and to be a part of the team again, ' he said. '. .. I see myself playing in the World Cup. So I know what I can do, and I'm happy that it's looking good for me. So I just can't wait to keep going on this line and to represent my country next summer. ' For now, Kluivert is focused on finishing the season strong with Bournemouth - and enjoying the club's Stateside tour after that. 'I also want to see a bit more of America. If we are in New York, I want to see more of the culture in New York. 'We go to Chicago, Atlanta. So I want to see everything, you know, what I can. So I just can't wait to be there and to play beautiful games for the fans. '
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