Christian Pulisic facing injury layoff after USMNT exit

Christian Pulisic has been diagnosed with a microfracture and bone bruise in the tibia/fibula area of his right leg, according to U.S. Soccer. The USMNT and AC Milan attacker is expected to be out for several weeks while his recovery plan is coordinated between club and federation.

The injury came early in the second half of the United States’ round-of-16 loss to Belgium, after Pulisic’s shooting motion ended in contact with Youri Tielemans’ leg. He remained on the field briefly before being replaced by Sebastian Berhalter in the 59th minute.

The setback follows a difficult tournament physically for Pulisic, who had also been managing a calf issue first sustained in training before the opener against Paraguay. That earlier problem affected his minutes across the group stage before he returned to the starting lineup in the knockout round.

ESPN reported, citing an unnamed source, that the likely absence could be around four to six weeks, which would put his AC Milan training return sometime in August. Because that timeline is not from an official medical update, editors should treat it as provisional until Milan or U.S. Soccer provide further guidance.