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Christian Pulisic has sparked concern over an injury problem for the USA after his superb first-half display in the Group D World Cup 2026 opener against Paraguay.
The Milan winger shone at SoFi Stadium, Los Angeles, and played a major part in two goals as Mauricio Pochettino’s side stormed into a 3-0 lead.
But the USA coach removed his talisman at the break, with a lack of clarity as to why, with some suggesting Pochettino was keen to rest the No 10.
Fox co-commentator Stu Holden took a pessimistic view of the decision to remove ‘Captain America’ though, which saw Sebastian Berhalter step into the game at the interval.
“That’s not a tactical substitution,” remarked Holden during co-commentary duties. “For your star player, something has to be up.”
While Fox also reported that Pulisic had motioned to his family and friends in the crowd: “I’m good”.
USA confirmed that Pochettino will address the situation after the match in his post-match press conference.
Christian Pulisic of the U.S. in action with Paraguay’s Diego Gomez (Reuters)
While the 27-year-old was seen on his feet throughout the second half and appeared to show no signs of serious discomfort.
Pulisic was excellent during the first half, operating from the left and surging past Paraguay defenders with Pochettino’s attack impressing throughout.
The former Chelsea star’s run led to the first goal, a Damian Bobadilla own-goal, before another impressive run and cut-back saw Folarin Balogun double the USA’s lead.
Balogun would add a third before the break to complete a performance that Alexi Lalas suggested as one of the greatest first-half group stage performances in Fifa World Cup history.
