​The soccer savior, once hailed as Captain America, isn’t escaping blame again after failing to shine on the biggest stage for his country. Christian Pulisic was substituted in the 58th minute of the United States’ round-of-16 clash with Belgium on Monday night after he couldn’t recover from an apparent foot injury he suffered moments earlier when his follow-through clipped the leg of a Belgian defender as he prepared for a shot. It felt like a fitting finale to Pulisic’s World Cup, given the way his tournament unfolded. He played just 45 minutes in the group stage, exiting at halftime against Paraguay with a calf strain, then returned for a full 90 against Bosnia and Herzegovina in the round of 32, only to leave the field less than an hour into perhaps the most significant match in USMNT history.
Pulisic wasn’t faring well during his 58 minutes on the field. His first five touches yielded turnovers, and he lost possession a game-high 11 times in the first half. The United States trailed 3-1 by the time he left, and it was clear that this team would once again bow out of the World Cup in the knockout stage.
After the match, Pulisic offered comments that did little to soothe the growing frustration. Speaking with Fox Sports’ Jenny Taft, he described his injury: “I mean, I just twisted my ankle, sprained my ankle. It’s just frustrating to end like that, of course. But, you know, now I get time to rest, so hopefully it’ll be okay.” That closing line—“now I get time to rest”—stoked a storm among former American players and analysts.
Fox Sports pundit Carli Lloyd was among the first to sound a note of disappointment. “I gotta be honest, I was a bit disappointed with Christian Pulisic,” she said. “Whether he wants to be the star of this team or not, we didn’t see enough from him in this particular game and really the whole World Cup. Little glimpses here and there.” After a video of Pulisic’s injury explanation circulated online, Lloyd offered an even sharper critique.
Other former players joined in. Landon Donovan, a longtime USMNT figure and Fox Sports analyst, weighed in quickly as well. “And in fact … there’s reporting that he asked to get subbed out of the game. I can’t confirm that, so I don’t know if that’s true or not. But the reality is, he came out of a World Cup knockout game at home with his leg still intact. You would’ve had to drag me off the field,” Donovan said. “I would have punched the doctor in the face and said, ‘You’re not taking me off the field. Put whatever you need to put in me, and I’m staying on the field.’”
The sentiment extended beyond former players. FS1’s Nick Wright summed up the frustration succinctly, echoing the broader chatter about the perceived gap between Pulisic’s status and his on-field impact in the tournament. The conversations around Pulisic’s leadership, role, and performance continued to surge in the wake of the loss, reflecting the pressure that comes with being asked to carry a national team on football’s biggest stage.