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With the first summer friendly just around the corner, Mauricio Pochettino reassured U.S. soccer supporters that star forward Christian Pulisic will break his 19-game scoring slump while representing the Stars and Stripes.
"He's going to score in the World Cup," the Argentine head coach said Thursday, as the USMNT held training sessions in Atlanta ahead of their clash with Senegal in the first of two pre-World Cup friendlies in Charlotte on Sunday. "I really trust in that... He's had a very good attitude, very good commitment. He's trying so hard to get to his best level. I think he will achieve it."
For the 27-year-old AC Milan winger, Sunday's friendly will mark 154 days since he last found the net for club or country, netting the opener in a 3–0 victory over Hellas Verona on Dec. 28, 2025. His most recent international goal came on Nov. 18, 2024, when he scored twice in a 4–2 Concacaf Nations League triumph over Jamaica—a match in which his goal celebration made him a polarizing figure.
"For me, he's a special player," Pochettino said of Pulisic. "We are going to try in these [two] weeks to restore his confidence, and we really trust in him, and we have the confidence that he is going to perform."
2025 Summer Drama In the Rearview
While Pulisic hasn't scored for the national team in 18 months, his absence from some of their most critical matches is a significant factor behind that tally. Last summer, he turned down a call-up to friendlies and the Concacaf Gold Cup, before becoming embroiled in a public dispute with Pochettino.
At the time, Pochettino acknowledged he had not spoken with his star player, while both parties made multiple media appearances to defend their respective stances. Pulisic cited the need for rest and recovery, while his manager responded, "I am a coach, not a mannequin," voicing his frustration over the player's decision to decline the call-up.
That episode, which Pulisic later downplayed upon rejoining the national team's fall camps by saying it had "not as much drama as you guys think there is," appears to be firmly in the past as the World Cup draws near—even as Pochettino remains candid about his lingering disappointment over his star's decision.
"I was disappointed with him [for missing the Gold Cup]," Pochettino told The Guardian. "I am transparent about that. He was disappointed with our decision not to include him in the two friendly games [against Switzerland and Turkey]."
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Senegal Friendly Looms
While Pulisic was unable to feature in last summer's friendlies after opting out of the tournament, there is nothing standing in the way of his participation in the World Cup and its preparatory fixtures, beginning with Sunday's match against Senegal.
One factor working in his favor at the USMNT level is the opportunity to partner with Monaco's Folarin Balogun, who bagged 19 goals across Ligue 1, Coupe de France, and UEFA Champions League competition in 2026 and is poised to be the breakout star of the home World Cup.
"I'm confident that good things are going to come," Pulisic told FOX SPORTS. "You make a couple of good plays in a tournament like this, and things change fast."
Following the Senegal fixture, the USMNT will take on Germany at a sold-out Soldier Field in Chicago on June 6, before turning their attention to their June 12 World Cup opener against Paraguay in Los Angeles.