USA's Christian Pulisic under fire for awful post-loss answer: 'Now I'll get time to rest'
· Yahoo Sports
USA's Christian Pulisic under fire for awful post-loss answer: 'Now I'll get time to rest' originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Visit saltysenoritaaz.com for more information.
When the United States needed him on Monday night, Christian Pulisic wasn't there.
For most of the first hour of the World Cup Round of 16 clash with Belgium, Pulisic simply didn't get opportunities. And then he left with an ankle injury.
The U.S. lost, and so their tournament is over. Pulisic won't get a chance to make a mark on a World Cup stage again until 2030.
And afterward, Pulisic gave a bizarre interview answer that has fans quite upset.
MORE: Singing Hey Jude as Bellingham sets epic World Cup recor
What did Christian Pulisic say?
This was Pulisic's response to Fox's Jenny Taft, who asked him what he was "dealing with" that led him to be subbed off:
"I just twisted my ankle, sprained my ankle. It's frustrating to end like that of course. But now I get time to rest, so hopefully it'll be OK."
To be fair to Pulisic, giving answers after a tournament-ending loss can't be the easiest thing.
But fans have, of course, latched onto that last sentence. "Now I get time to rest," is probably not what USMNT supporters want to hear after their squad bowed out of the World Cup.
MORE: Folarin Balogun, after all that, couldn't save USA
If Pulisic could have another go at this interview, he'd probably just filter that sentence out and not say it at all.
But it doesn't work like that, and so it doesn't reflect great on him.
Pulisic was dynamic in the first half of the United States' opener against Paraguay, but he went off at halftime with an injury, then missed time before trying to get back into a rhythm. It wasn't close to the tournament that he would've drawn up.
The in-his-prime Pulisic is still one of the best players to ever suit up for the USA. But in this World Cup, only his first 45 minutes were special -- beyond that, he left a lot to be desired.