US Star Christian Pulisic's World Cup Hindered by Injuries
The United States' World Cup bid came to an end at the hands of Belgium, with star forward Christian Pulisic watching from the bench, his tournament hampered by injuries and a lack of effectiveness.
Pulisic, the most accomplished US striker, was unable to score in his second World Cup, with his only World Cup goal coming against Iran in the group stage in 2022, despite having 33 goals in 90 international appearances.
For the second time in this World Cup, Pulisic was forced to leave a match in the second half due to an injury, this time after twisting his right ankle when he extended for a shot attempt and hit the boot of Belgium captain Youri Tielemans in the 52nd minute of Monday's 4-1 loss to Belgium.
After a brief period on the pitch, Pulisic began favoring the foot and was replaced in the 59th minute by Sebastian Berhalter, with the US trailing 3-1. He described having to come out of the game as 'difficult for me to deal with'.
'I felt really good this summer with the guys and I thought my level was high,' Pulisic said. 'It’s disappointing I didn’t quite have the moments I was hoping to and to try to help us to get over this next step of beating a really good team.'
US coach Mauricio Pochettino expressed hope that Pulisic's injury was not serious and that he would be able to reintegrate with his club, AC Milan, after the World Cup. Typically, players receive 21 days off after the end of the World Cup before reporting to their clubs.
Pulisic had been slowed by a calf injury during the group stage, which caused him to sit out the Americans' win over Australia and limited his participation in other matches. He returned to the starting lineup for the Americans' 2-0 win against Bosnia-Herzegovina in the round of 32.
Pulisic vowed to 'try and stay positive', adding: 'I did a lot of good things and the team did as well.' His teammate, American defender Alex Freeman, expressed confidence in Pulisic's ability to bounce back, saying: 'He's going to bounce back. He's a great player and a person that's always going to fight.'
