Christian Pulisic says questioning his commitment to US is ‘totally out of line'
Christian Pulisic said that he asked the US national team coaching staff to be part of the two friendlies preceding the Gold Cup but not the Gold Cup itself – a proposal that was rejected – and defended his decision to step away from the US national team this summer in an interview on Thursday.
The interview, which occurred on a live stream of CBS Sports' Call it What You Want podcast, started with Pulisic describing his status at the end of the season with Milan, the second straight campaign that saw him reach the 50-games played mark. Saying that 'my body started talking to me,' Pulisic said he started considering that a break in action may be needed towards the end of the Milan season, with two US friendlies and the Gold Cup on the horizon.
'What is going to be best for me leading into next year and going into the [2026] World Cup? And was that to play eight more games and then get no no rest at all, go straight into preseason and then grind another year and go straight into the World Cup? That's it's not what I felt was best for my body,' Pulisic said. 'I did want to be a part of at least the two friendlies. I did speak with the [US] coaches, and I asked, and [said] I wanted to be a part of the team in whatever capacity I could. And they said no. They said they only wanted one roster, and that's coaches decision. I fully respect that. I didn't understand it, but it is what it is.'
As it turned out, Pulisic was just one of a number of US national team star players who would be absent this summer, either due to injury, Club World Cup commitments, or personal reasons. But as his nation's most prominent player and a leader in the locker room, Pulisic's decision drew plenty of criticism, including from former USMNT greats Landon Donovan and Tim Howard.
Pulisic directly addressed this criticism, saying that questioning his commitment to the national team was 'way out of line' and does not line up with conversations he has had with those same figures in private.
'When it comes to [Donovan, Howard, and other ex-national team critics], it is tough because I looked up to those guys growing up. Some of these guys were my idols, and I respect them so much as players,' Pulisic said. 'Privately, the way they talk to me and clearly want to show support and be your friend and everything, and then they say something slightly different publicly. … Does it hurt me? Am I surprised by it? I don't know. Not really. People are always going to have their opinions.'
Pulisic's father Mark responded forcefully to Donovan on social media, telling the former US player to 'grow a pair' while pointing out that Donovan himself once took an extended sabbatical from national team duty.
In the CBS interview, Christian Pulisic was not asked about his father's comments, but added that 'I just don't understand why so many people are so big on just wanting to give out these takes when they've been through tough moments themselves. I don't understand the idea of wanting to divide this fanbase against the players, against the team, and bring it a negative light over it in any way. But we tend to do that a lot, and it doesn't make sense to me.'
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The US has struggled in its summer slate so far, losing 2-1 to Turkey before being battered 4-0 by Switzerland with a roster that reaches fairly deep into the US player pool. These losses follow a poor Nations League performance that involved Pulisic and most of the team's top players, in which the team lost to Canada and Panama en route to a fourth-placed finish. Pulisic said criticism of himself and the players' supposed lack of commitment in these losses was a 'lazy take.'
'We don't step out there and not give 100% it's just not, it's not something that we do,' he said. 'We we all want it so bad.'
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