Christian Pulisic finds the net and gains confidence before World Cup

In soccer, for a forward, a goal is like spinach for Popeye: when a striker scores, he fills his chest with air and pride during the celebration; he grows stronger, and this also allows him to face adversity with greater resilience.

Although nothing was at stake — it was merely a warm-up match — the goal Christian Pulisic scored last Sunday in the United States’ 3-2 victory over Senegal had a special flavor. And it could not have come at a better time: right on the eve of the team’s FIFA World Cup debut, June 12, against Paraguay in Inglewood, Calif.

“I felt this confidence — like I’ve been playing really well in recent months — but all everyone seems to want to worry about is goals. So hopefully we can stop talking about it,” said Pulisic, pleased with the win and with having scored, yet simultaneously expressing a hint of frustration regarding the criticism surrounding his scoring drought. “We  have games ahead and I have to be ready.”

The match against the African side in North Carolina had started off well for the U.S. squad’s biggest star. After receiving a pass from forward Ricardo Pepi, he delivered a perfect cross into the heart of the penalty area for the onrushing right back Sergiño Dest, who charged in to open the scoring. In just six minutes, the team—coached by Argentine manager Mauricio Pochettino—had made its intentions to play attacking football abundantly clear.

A few more minutes passed, and Pulisic, 27, finally rediscovered his scoring touch. Once again, the key was another clever pass from Pepi, though this time coming down the right flank of the attack. Pulisic peeled away, rounded goalkeeper Mory Diaw as he rushed off his line, and finished with precision into the net from a very tight angle. It had been about five months since he had scored for his club — AC Milan in Italy’s “Calcio” — or at the international level. Judging by that mix of joy and pent-up frustration in his celebration, the long wait was well worth it.

Perhaps Pulisic, who has scored 33 goals in 85 international matches, lifted a huge weight off his shoulders at a moment when, as he knows all too well, the pressure is only going to intensify this summer. The United States has one final warm-up friendly remaining—on Saturday against Germany in Chicago.

Beyond the confidence Pochettino has always shown in Pulisic’s abilities, the doubts regarding the form in which Pulisic arrives at this major tournament were not unfounded: during the European season that just concluded, he failed to score in the 19 matches he played for AC Milan since late December; furthermore, he had gone eight consecutive matches without scoring for the U.S. national team, dating back to November 2024.

Despite the goal, the assist, and the strong performance he delivered against Senegal before being substituted by Pochettino at halftime, Pulisic’s postmatch comments to the press resonated with some critics.

“If you’re playing well but not scoring, and your team loses, it’s only logical that you wouldn’t be happy; after all, the primary thing your teammates ask of you as an attacker is to score goals,” said Landon Donovan, now retired, and perhaps the most qualified person to truly empathize with Pulisic’s situation.

The former U.S. national team captain has experienced this very scenario firsthand — often compounded by the added pressure of shouldering the weight of responsibility during a World Cup. As both a star player and a top scorer, all eyes were fixed on him to be the difference-maker in any given match. Many times he succeeded; just as many times, he did not.

In fact, the comparison between the two holds true: this marked the eighth time in his national team career that Pulisic has recorded both a goal and an assist in a single match. Donovan is the only one to surpass him in that category since 1995, with 13.

Pulisic, in fact, also stated that he was happier about his team’s victory than about having scored. That is why Donovan’s opinion resonates with his own sentiments.

Donovan’s remarks were made on the podcast he co-hosts with his former national team teammate and former goalkeeper, Tim Howard, who specifically referenced the second part of the comments Pulisic made to the press in the immediate aftermath of the game. “People are going to keep talking about that,” Howard warned, anticipating the possibility that the forward might not score during the World Cup.

In other words, Howard, a World Cup veteran who enjoyed a distinguished career in England’s prestigious Premier League, is telling him that this, too, is part of the game, and that he must accept the responsibility.

His coach and national team teammates, however, were less critical; instead, they expressed their delight over the goal and the high level of performance Pulisic displayed against the African side in Charlotte.

“Christian’s performance over those 45 minutes was really good,” Pochettino said. “He still has the potential to improve.”

The head coach stated that the level of play Pulisic demonstrated reflected the tremendous effort he has been putting in ever since the national team training camp began.

“The way he played during those 45 minutes was the fruit of the habits he established last week: training every day with this attitude, this commitment, and this energy,” he explained. “I think now we need to try to extend that to the full 90 minutes.”

“Poch,” who could potentially become Pulisic’s coach at AC Milan once his contract with the U.S. Soccer Federation expires, did not shy away from addressing the topic of Pulisic’s recent goal drought.

“I’m happy for him because, after a long time — a few months — he’s back on the scoresheet,” the coach concluded. “Obviously, that is important for our players as they prepare for the World Cup.”

Another player who praised his performance was the versatile midfielder Weston McKennie, who also plays in Italy’s Serie A, albeit for Juventus in Torino, and has known Pulisic since their teenage years.

“We are all happy for him and we didn’t doubt him for a second,” said McKennie, who grew up playing soccer in Texas. “People that don’t know him may not know his abilities or what he is capable of.”

After the tough defeats suffered during the last FIFA international window against Belgium and Portugal, this victory, played before nearly 60,000 spectators who infused the match with the palpable excitement of an impending World Cup, came as a true blessing for Pochettino and served to boost the confidence of not only Pulisic but the entire team.

Perhaps the most encouraging takeaway was the quality of the attacking link-up play displayed by the United States. Pulisic and Pepi linked up and complemented each other beautifully while sharing minutes in the attack.

“He moves very well, knows how to read the play, and opens up space very effectively,” Pulisic said of Pepi, a native of El Paso.

But it was also important for Pochettino to confirm during the second half the high level of form Folarin Balogun has carried over from his stellar season in France with Monaco. The speedy forward scored the decisive goal in the 63rd minute with a clinical finish. He also had another goal disallowed for offside.

Pepi, who narrowly missed out on the squad for the last World Cup in Qatar in 2022 under head coach Gregg Berhalter, possesses a wealth of experience despite being just 23 years old. He has tallied 13 goals in 36 international appearances and is currently competing for a spot in the attack alongside Balogun and Haji Wright.

The U.S. attack looks highly promising. However, the defense — the weakest link in the team’s structure — continues to offer few guarantees ahead of the World Cup opener.

Sadio Mané twice brought Senegal back into the match after they had fallen behind, capitalizing on two glaring errors by the U.S. backline. The first instance involved a turnover by Antonee Robinson, allowing Mané to beat goalkeeper Matt Turner just before halftime. In the second half, he found the back of the net after Nicolas Jackson pressured backup goalkeeper Chris Brady into a difficult clearance.

Nevertheless, with the test of the match against Germany still to come, Pulisic remains confident as he looks ahead to the second World Cup of his career.

“I’m feeling a little more relaxed, even more now — and confident,” he said following the goal and the victory. “But there is still a lot of work to do.”

Germán Fernández-Moores is the editor of La Voz de Houston, the Spanish-language weekly of the Houston Chronicle. You can reach him at German.Fernandez-Moores@houstonchronicle.com