Christian Pulisic trained apart from his U.S. teammates on Thursday for the fourth straight day because of a left calf injury, leaving his availability for Friday’s World Cup match against Australia in doubt.
The United States captain has not trained with the squad since suffering stiffness in his calf during training before the Americans’ 4-1 win over Paraguay last week. He was substituted at halftime of that match as a precaution.
U.S. coach Mauricio Pochettino said Pulisic’s condition has improved significantly since then, but no final decision had been made ahead of the Group D clash in Seattle.
“We’ll see,” Pochettino said. “At the moment, we’ll see. If he’s not available for tomorrow, he will be available for the next game.”
Pulisic again trained separately on Thursday at Husky Soccer Stadium on the University of Washington campus. He joined teammates for a pre-training huddle while wearing a compression sleeve on his calf before heading indoors for individual gym work.
Midfielder Weston McKennie said he was unsure about Pulisic’s recovery but hopes the star winger can return in time for the match.
“I know he really wants to be in, and he’s doing everything that he can, and the staff is doing everything that they can as well,” McKennie said. “But, that’s also another question that’s better to ask him than me.”
The 27-year-old remains the most influential player in the U.S. squad. In the opening match against Paraguay, he helped force an own goal in the opening minutes and assisted one of Folarin Balogun’s two goals.
His absence would be a major blow for a team full of confidence after recording its highest-scoring World Cup victory.
Midfielder Cristian Roldan said the squad wants to build on that strong start.
“What excites me is that the entire world, the entire nation is behind us,” Roldan said. “I think that they enjoyed watching us play, and at the end of the day what we want to do is inspire and motivate the next generation. … We have to build off it, and that’s the truth. We can’t just talk about it: we have to show out against Australia.”
If Pulisic is unable to play, Pochettino has several options available. However, he declined to discuss specific replacements.
“At the moment, we are evaluating all possibilities just in case,” Pochettino said. “And then, we will decide if we have to go in one or another direction.”
Brenden Aaronson and Tim Weah are among the leading candidates to step into the starting lineup. Gio Reyna is another option after scoring against Paraguay. Sebastian Berhalter replaced Pulisic at halftime in the opener, while Malik Tillman also impressed after Pulisic left the field.
McKennie said Pulisic remains in a good place mentally despite the injury setback.
“I think mentally he’s great,” McKennie said. “I think it’s really hard for someone’s mental game to be messed up in these types of conditions in U.S. soccer, and all the guys around, we’re a big family. So, we’re always there to pick someone up if they’re down, and excel them even further if they’re not. So, I think he’s doing good mentally.”
