Christian Pulisic injury update as Mauricio Pochettino keeps Australia guessing with his plans for the forward

Christian Pulisic is a doubt for USA vs Australia
Christian Pulisic only managed 45 minutes against Paraguay (Image credit: Getty Images)

Christian Pulisic is the star name in the United States of America squad - but they may have to find a way to win without him when they take on Australia on Friday.

Kick-off in the Group D clash at Lumen Field in Seattle is set for noon local time (8pm UK time).

Both the United States and Australia will be looking to build on winning starts after seeing off Paraguay and Turkiye respectively in their opening games.

Play our FREE match predictor and win £1k

What happened to Pulisic

Christian Pulisic in individual training ahead of facing Australia

Christian Pulisic trained alone with his calf wrapped this week (Image credit: Getty Images)

Mauricio Pochettino will have been concerned to see Pulisic go off at the break in his side's 4-1 win, however.

Pulisic had been influential in helping his side blow the Paraguay away in a dominant first half, claiming the assist for Folarin Balogun's first goal.

Christian Pulisic celebrates a USA goal against Paraguay

Christian Pulisic was in good form in his 45 minutes against Paraguay (Image credit: Getty Images)

Pulisic has trained in the days leading up to the United States' meeting with Australia, but only in a limited individual capacity.

The Milan forward was seen training way from his colleagues with members of the US medical team during a session held on Wednesday.

Pochettino was unable to confirm at his Thursday press conference whether or not Pulisic would be fit to play a part against the Socceroos.

He said: "He’s evolving. He’s much better from Friday. We will see. If he is not available for tomorrow, he will be available for the next game [against Turkiye next Friday]."

Christian Pulisic is a doubt to face Paraguay but should be fit to take on Turkiye

Mauricio Pochettino is keen to have Christian Pulisic back fit as soon as possible (Image credit: Getty Images)

Pochettino went on: "When this type of thing happens, always it’s painful. Christian is strong and with a great mentality.

"He’s doing a fantastic effort to try and be ready as soon as possible."

Pennsylvania-born Pulisic has 87 international caps to his name, scoring 33 goals.

Steven Chicken

Steven Chicken has been working as a football writer since 2009, taking in stints with Football365 and the Huddersfield Examiner. Steven still covers Huddersfield Town home and away for his own publication, WeAreTerriers.com. Steven is a two-time nominee for Regional Journalist of the Year at the prestigious British Sports Journalism Awards, making the shortlist in 2020 and 2023.

You must confirm your public display name before commenting

Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.