USMNT and Chelsea star Christian Pulisic has once again succumbed to the same hamstring injury that has kept from appearing for Chelsea in their last couple of matches. The 22-year-old has been withdrawn from the USMNT squad for the upcoming matches against Wales and Panama.
Coach for the national squad Gregg Berhalter confirmed to reporters Wednesday morning, stating that Pulisic had come into camp as “day to day,” and wasn’t able to recover in time to play in the USMNT’s first matches since February.
He was quick to praise the mindset of the young man, which saw him join the camp despite the injury cloud he was under, telling the press:
“Christian is a big part of our group. He has been working through an injury, but it really says a lot that he wanted to come into the camp, be around the guys and continue to be a leader with this team.”
The injury which was sustained in bizarre circumstances when he slipped in the pregame warm-up prior to Chelsea facing Burnley on Halloween.
It’s the latest in a long string of muscle-related injuries for the American, who has missed the Blues’ last three league games.
His coaches at both club and international level are both in agreement that he will overcome these setbacks, as both have recently complemented his work rate and determination in both the recovery room and on the training pitch.
Unfortunately for fans of the stars and stripes, the wait to see him in action for his country will have to continue until 2021.
The clamour to see him back out on the pitch will reach all-new levels by the time USMNT reconvene in March. As they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder, and by that point he will have been out of international action for 18 months.
Berhalter added that it was ‘hard to speculate’ when Pulisic would return to action for Chelsea, but did say that he was “making good progress” and was in the treatment room three times a day while with the Stars & Stripes.