Christian Pulisic’s decision to skip the last Gold Cup is still getting plenty of chatter, both behind closed doors and out in the open. For the USMNT, that tournament was the last meaningful run-out before next summer’s World Cup. Choosing to sit it out split opinions — fans and pundits alike debated whether it was the right call.
Inside the squad, though, the vibe was different. Tyler Adams, the team captain and one of the most trusted voices in the group, told The Athletic that Pulisic had full backing from his teammates. “It’s something everyone wants to have an opinion on, of course, but what Christian did was what he had to do for himself,” Adams explained. “He doesn’t need to earn anyone’s respect in this group. Everyone knows who Christian is as a person and how good he is as a player. But everyone needs time, at certain points in their career or life, to just say, ‘Let me take a step back, focus on myself for a second and then move forward.’”
USMNT has a united locker room
Milan’s No. 10 was coming off a grueling European season. For Adams, it was only natural for his teammate to put rest first. “I talk to Christian all the time. Obviously, we’re really close. And I know that this summer, even though he stepped away a bit, he didn’t expect there to be so much noise and heat,” he said.
To Adams, all the fuss is proof of Pulisic’s status in American soccer. “Everybody wants to drag his name through the mud because it makes a big story, or it creates noise… And that shows how big he is as a player and how important he is. But everyone on the team knows how important he is, the incredible person he is.”
The weight of a pause before the World Cup
Taking time away might end up being one of the smartest moves Pulisic has made in years. After a demanding season in Europe and with the task of leading the USMNT into a World Cup on home soil, every practice, every recovery session, every quiet moment counts for more.
Inside the team, the feeling isn’t that he backed away — it’s that he was quietly setting himself up to be at his best when it matters most. And if he delivers, people won’t remember this as a controversy. They’ll remember it as the turning point that brought fresh belief the United States could actually make history.