U.S. soccer star Christian Pulisic indicated from his hospital bed that he’ll be sufficiently recovered from a “pelvic contusion” to play in the U.S. Men’s Team’s round-of-16 World Cup match against the Netherlands on Saturday. (Insert juvenile joke about country name here.)
Despite Pulisic’s optimism, the U.S. officially lists him as day-to-day.
In a moment that encapsulated the full range of human emotion, Pulisic scored the team’s game-clinching goal in the Americans’ make-or-break match against Iran on Tuesday — and fell to the ground in agony as he did so.
Pulisic had collided with Iran’s goalkeeper on the play, and though the exact nature of his injury was unclear even after multiple replays, it sure seemed like he had suffered a blow to a particularly sensitive area. The world’s men cringed in solidarity. After a brief return to the game, Pulisic was subbed out at halftime; later reports that he had been taken to the hospital (purportedly for an “abdominal” injury) stirred renewed concern about his availability this weekend.
If Pulisic does play, he may want to consult a handy list from Dick’s Sporting Goods before doing so.
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