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Having logged just 224 minutes at the 2026 World Cup, Christian Pulisic has struggled to find his footing in the early stages of the 2026–27 club season.
Despite being a headline name on the U.S. men's national team's 26-man World Cup squad this past summer, a series of leg injuries curtailed his tournament minutes and have continued to hamper him into the fall. Three matches into AC Milan's Serie A season, the 27-year-old winger has yet to set foot on the pitch, even though he has been named in Ruben Amorim's matchday squads.
Earlier reports indicated that Pulisic sustained a bone bruise and microfracture in his right tibia and fibula during the World Cup, and also dealt with lingering pain from previous injuries throughout the competition.
The effects of those setbacks were evident again when he was left unused in Milan's most recent outing, a 1–1 stalemate with Serie A rivals Juventus. In his absence, 19-year-old Alphadjo Cisse appears to have stepped into Pulisic's role, while fellow USMNT midfielder Yunus Musah—who has largely been passed over for international selection under Mauricio Pochettino—has featured in every match from the start.
"Pulisic is back from injury. I'm managing him. For now, Alpha is taking his place," Milan manager and former Manchester United head coach Amorim told the media following the draw against the Turin club. "Chukwueze came on and got an assist. Moreira hadn't played in three weeks. Rabiot played 60 minutes today. We're still managing the minutes of certain players while trying to win games. Sometimes it's not just about the technical and tactical side—it's also about the physical side."
Pulisic will have a chance to make his seasonal debut in Milan's next fixture on Saturday, when the club travels to the Italian capital to face Lazio.
Will Pulisic Earn USMNT Call for Friendlies?
With no competitive minutes under his belt since the World Cup, Pulisic is running out of time to regain full match fitness and stake a claim in the USMNT's friendly fixtures against Peru, Chile, Canada, and Mexico during the September-October international window.
While earlier phases of Pulisic's career might have seen him choose rest over reporting to camp, the newly expanded roster, potentially bolstered by younger talents and a renewed drive from Pochettino, could draw him back into the fold even if he isn't at peak fitness.
Speaking primarily about younger players, Pochettino voiced his frustration with players skipping international camps, in what appeared to be a veiled reference to Pulisic's absence from the 2025 Gold Cup. At the time, the Serie A forward cited the need for rest ahead of the World Cup, though that plan ultimately did not pay off.
"We were talking about habits. Before, it was difficult to make the roster for the Gold Cup one year before because the mindset was different. They'd say, 'Oh, if I have no holidays, I cannot arrive fresh for the World Cup,'" Pochettino said this week.
"With time, [we] know now that is bulls---, no? It's [time] to change this type of idea [and] to build the mindset with the coaches, with the people in the organization and in the clubs, and, of course, with the players in the way we will plan."
Whether Pochettino opts to include an out-of-form and underprepared Pulisic in his squad remains uncertain, but it will be crucial for the USMNT's No. 10 to rediscover his best form at club level before competitive international action resumes with the Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals in November.