USMNT to give Pulisic homecoming with game in Philly
CHESTER, PA. » Dave Sarachan’s summer plans aren’t what he’d hoped they’d be at this time last year. As the interim boss — though he detests that moniker — of the United States men’s national team, Sarachan is overseeing a player pool in generational flux, from a promising young crop sprouting up from the ashes of the last fall’s disastrous failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup finals.
Instead of a trip to Russia, Sarachan and company will have to settle for Chester in late May, where the U.S. will take on Bolivia in a Memorial Day friendly. At the very least, the local crowd will have a familiar face in Christian Pulisic to cheer.
Sarachan confirmed the Germanbased midfielder’s participation in the friendly at Talen Energy Stadium in a press conference Wednesday, as the next great hope of American soccer will play his first game since last October’s travesty in Trinidad that bounced the U.S. from the World Cup.
The players available for the Bolivia match, the first of three to be followed by European trips to Ireland and France within two weeks, are a mix-and-match, befitting the state of the program. Falling outside of a FIFA international window, clubs aren’t required to release players, so Sarachan said he’ll work with MLS clubs to fill the training camp in the U.S. ahead of Bolivia, then rely on mostly European-based players at the end of a long season against Ireland and France.
Pulisic, who’ll be in the States for Borussia Dortmund’s friendly with Los Angeles FC May 22, will bridge the gap, the Hershey native returning to his home state.
Pulisic has endured a tumultuous season with Dortmund, which sits third in the Bundesliga and never posed a serious threat of dethroning Bayern Munich.
Sarachan, named the interim boss after Bruce Arena resigned following the qualifying debacle, considered calling Pulisic for friendlies in November and March, but both times deemed it more important for him to settle into crucial junctures of the Dortmund season. Sarachan traveled to see Dortmund play second-place Schalke (which features several young Americans, including Weston McKennie) on April 15, a 2-0 loss for Dortmund.
“He’s a very serious young pro,” Sarachan said of Pulisic. “He’s in a real bubble over there with Dortmund. I saw him play Schalke, and he was pretty gutted after that game. He’s been through a lot through the year, personally. I know that there’s a lot of demands on a kid like Christian, he’s being pulled in a lot of different directions. … I’m trying to be helpful in the process of trying to give him a little wiggle room in terms of the national team.”
The 19-year-old has seven goals and eight assists in all competitions for Dortmund, and his future provides a steady supply of grist for the transfer rumor mill. Sarachan understands that for Pulisic to play the role the manager envisions in the national team, sorting his club future is vital.
“I think he’s a pretty sharp kid and understands what he’s about and what he needs,” Sarachan said. “… The only thing I would say, I would say to almost any player, the environment you go to has to challenge you, you have to be a part of it, you have to believe in the philosophy of that club and hopefully the manager trusts you.”