United States men’s national team head coach Mauricio Pochettino said Christian Pulisic should be the Lionel Messi of the U.S. due to his talent and recognizability.
“I think Christian in the last year showed a great quality. He’s performing in Europe, also he’s performing with the national team. He’s a very talented player that can help us to win,” Pochettino said when speaking on the “Unfiltered Soccer” podcast with former USMNT standouts Landon Donovan and Tim Howard.
“You say people compare Messi with Christian Pulisic. I don’t want to be disrespectful to Messi or Pulisic, but I think in this country, Pulisic should be our Messi, because he’s an iconic player. The kids on the street for sure if you ask one soccer player in this country, it’s Pulisic.”
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Pulisic, 26, stands as an integral part of the USMNT, recording 32 goals and 18 assists in 76 appearances since making his senior team debut in March 2016. He has taken the role of captain on multiple occasions, and led the team to the 2019-20, 2022-23 and 2023-24 Concacaf Nations League trophies.
At club level, Pulisic has represented Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea and now AC Milan. He is coming off statistically the most successful club season of his career with 17 goals and 12 assists in all competitions.
Despite the active role he plays on the squad, Pulisic decided, in conjunction with the U.S. Soccer Federation, not to join the USMNT for two June friendlies and the Gold Cup after a grueling season in Europe. Pochettino defended Pulisic’s decision to watch from the sidelines, confirming the two communicated before the decision was made public.
Christian Pulisic has been an integral part of the USMNT but will not be available to coach Mauricio Pochettino this summer. Shaun Clark/ISI Photos/USSF/Getty Images for USSF
“Christian is a very nice guy, is very committed to the national team and he wants to help and of course is desperate to play in the [2026] World Cup and arrive in the best condition,” Pochettino said.
“All these conversations that we were taking with the players, I think that was the best decision to help him because every player are in different circumstances.”
Pulisic stands among the list of experienced USMNT players who will not feature in the 2025 Gold Cup, including Antonee Robinson, Timothy Weah, Weston McKennie, Giovanni Reyna and Yunus Musah.
Despite those absences, Pochettino emphasized that every American player should desperately want to play for the national team.
“The people need to prioritize the national team,” Pochettino said. “We were talking about Argentine players, or Brazilian players or English players or Spanish players, they are desperate. Even Messi, even Neymar, even [Kylian] Mbappé for France, these guys are desperate to go to the national team.
“For them, when they go, they don’t see if it’s a friendly game, if it’s an official game, it’s a World Cup — it doesn’t matter, because the possibility to defend one time more your flag, your shirt. It’s about to feel proud. And that is the responsibility to us to translate.”
The USMNT will face Turkey and Switzerland in friendlies before taking on Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago and Saudi Arabia in Group D of the Concacaf Gold Cup.