АНУ-ын шигшээ багийн ахлагч Кристиан Пулишич ДАШТ-ий шөвгийн 16-д Бельгид 4:1-ээр хожигдсоны дараа олон нийтийн шүүмжлэлд өртөв.
Бельгитэй хийсэн тоглолтын дараа өгсөн ярилцлагадаа Пулишич бэртлийнхээ талаар ярихдаа “амарч, хүч сэлбэх цаг ирлээ” хэмээн дурдсан нь түүнийг ялагдалд сэтгэл хангалуун байгаа мэт сэтгэгдлийг төрүүлжээ. Гэвч тамирчин өөрөө энэ нь зөвхөн бэртлээ намжаах гэсэн үг байсан бөгөөд ДАШТ-ийг ийм байдлаар дуусгасандаа туйлын их харамсаж буйгаа илэрхийлсэн байна. Тэрээр тоглолтын 59 дэх минутад бэртлийн улмаас сэлгээнд суухдаа сэтгэлээр унаж, өмсгөлөөрөө нүүрээ халхалсан нь түүний чин сэтгэлийн харуусал байлаа.
Шигшээ багийн дасгалжуулагч Маурисио Почеттино болон өмнөх дасгалжуулагчид Пулишичийг эх орныхоо төлөө чин зүрхнээсээ зүтгэдэг, ялах хүсэл эрмэлзэлтэй тоглогч гэдгийг онцолжээ. Тэрээр бэртлийн улмаас хүссэн тоглолтоо үзүүлж чадаагүй ч багийнхаа төлөө бүхнээ зориулсан гэдгээ мэдэгдсэн юм. 2025 оны Голд цомын тэмцээнийг өнжсөн нь түүний ДАШТ-д үзүүлсэн сул гүйцэтгэлтэй холбоогүй бөгөөд энэ удаагийн ДАШТ нь түүний хувьд азгүйтэл, бэртэл гэмтлээр дүүрэн өнгөрөв.
Дэлгэрэнгүй эх сурвалжийг харах
Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
SEATTLE — Christian Pulisic’s 2026 World Cup was in no way what he or America hoped it would be. It began with a 45-minute flash of transcendent talent. It became a microcosm of his career: influential but inconsistent, incisive but injury-prone. It began with so much hype and hope but ended with promise unfulfilled, with a sprained ankle and pained frustration.
What it did not end with, to be abundantly clear, is Pulisic wanting a rest.
Yet that has become a primary line of criticism being hurled at Pulisic in the aftermath of the U.S. men’s national team’s deflating World Cup exit.
After a 4-1 loss to Belgium in the round of 16, Pulisic gave an interview to Fox in which he said of his injury: “It’s just frustrating to end like that, of course, but now I have time to rest, so hopefully it’ll be OK.”
The 10-second answer, stripped from the broader interview, led some critics, including former U.S. national team players, to believe that in Pulisic’s mind, rest was consolation for the loss.
But in reality, he was feeling just the opposite.
In the same interview, he said of the once-magical World Cup run: “I never wanted it to end.”
Around an hour later, speaking to print reporters in the so-called mixed zone, he said five of those same words — “I have time to rest” — but it was clear that he said them to downplay the injury.
His point was that his physical pain was a footnote on the big-picture pain that he and tens of millions of U.S. soccer fans were feeling.
His very next words in the mixed zone were: “It’s just an unfortunate way to finish.”
And he soon continued: “It’s — it’s really difficult.”
When asked to reflect on his performance at this World Cup, Pulisic said: “I mean, I felt really good this summer playing with the guys, and I thought my level was high. It’s disappointing, I didn’t quite have the moments I was hoping to, and to try to help us really push and get over this next step of beating a really good team. So, I’m disappointed with myself, of course. But I’m gonna try to stay positive. I did a lot of good things, and the team did as well.”
Did the USMNT get a serious reality check against Belgium?
Felipe Cardenas
Was his outlook a bit too rosy after the biggest letdown in American soccer history? Perhaps.
And could Pulisic have done more, either in preparation for this summer or on the pitch Monday night? Of course he could have.
But the one line of criticism that is absolutely off base is the one that accuses Pulisic of not caring.
Ask his teammates, and they’ll tell you as much.
Ask his former coaches, and they’ll tell you the same.
“I know him, and I know how much he cares for (the national team),” former USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter told The Athletic last summer.
Dave Sarachan, the interim coach who preceded Berhalter, said of Pulisic: “I know his love for his country and his team.”
Mauricio Pochettino, the team’s current coach, said something similar last month when Pulisic was trying to recover from the calf injury that interrupted his World Cup: “He’s doing a massive effort trying to be ready. For every single player that loves (his) country, it’s an amazing opportunity to enjoy and to help the team to perform and to win games. When this type of thing happens, always it’s painful, but I think Christian is strong, and with great mentality, and is doing a fantastic effort to try to be ready as soon as possible.”
Christian Pulisic’s World Cup ended on the USMNT bench after he was subbed off vs. Belgium with an injury (Abbie Parr / AP Photo)
Pochettino previously clashed with his star earlier in his 21-month tenure. When Pulisic opted to skip the 2025 Concacaf Gold Cup, a regional tournament, he attracted some of the same ridicule and condemnation that he’s taking now. And yes, that decision seems a bit silly in retrospect. Pulisic said he needed a reprieve from the year-round grind of professional soccer, and specifically hoped that it would prime him for a strong 2026 World Cup. That, ultimately, did not happen.
But those two things — Pulisic skipping the Gold Cup and Pulisic underwhelming at the World Cup — are more coincidental than anything.
And in an alternate world, where Pulisic doesn’t get kicked in the calf during a training session two days before the World Cup opener, perhaps last summer’s decision looks very different.
In the end, his World Cup was a story of misfortune and frustration, not any sort of missing drive or insufficient effort. It went much like the career of a teen phenom who became a trailblazer for American soccer in Europe but hasn’t quite hit the heights that many thought he could. He was brilliant against Paraguay, absent against Australia, bright off the bench against Turkey, quiet against Bosnia and Herzegovina, and flat out bad against Belgium — just like nearly everyone else in a U.S. jersey.
That’s why he pulled his jersey up to his distraught face on the U.S. bench after being substituted in the 59th minute.
Reflecting later on his second injury in a month, he said: “It sucked. It was tough, it was difficult for me to deal with.”
So no, he was not ready for a vacation. He can be criticized for his performance against Belgium, and for his durability, but beyond that?
His words last summer, defending his Gold Cup decision, hold true today: “I feel like I’ve given so much to this team and, truly, no one wants it more than me. I promise you that.”
