‘Not falling for it’: Christian Pulisic getting little sympathy after fracturing his leg

The USMNT’s 2026 FIFA World Cup run came to an end in the round of 16 after suffering a brutal 4-1 defeat to Belgium. A lot of the discourse surrounding the match has been about U.S. President Donald Trump’s role in getting Folarin Balogun reinstated to play despite being assessed a red card in the round of 32. However, star right winger Christian Pulisic has also been facing heat from fans and media for underperforming throughout the World Cup.

Pulisic left Monday’s match early after suffering an injury in the second half, and now ESPN is reporting on just how severe the injury was.

“U.S. forward Christian Pulisic suffered a bone bruise and microfracture in his leg during Monday’s World Cup loss to Belgium, and will be sidelined for several weeks but not months, multiple people briefed on the diagnosis told The Athletic. Subsequent medical assessments revealed the extent of the injury to be a bone bruise and microfracture of the tibia/fibula, sources said,” The Athletic reported on Thursday.

U.S. forward Christian Pulisic suffered a bone bruise and microfracture in his leg during Monday’s World Cup loss to Belgium, and will be sidelined for several weeks but not months, multiple people briefed on the diagnosis told The Athletic.

Subsequent medical assessments… pic.twitter.com/rIRZcgX8Sx

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) July 9, 2026

Despite knowing how serious Pulisic’s injury was, some fans on social media still weren’t having it.

“Pulisic should do the honourable thing by retiring. His whole career have been about one injury or the other. He’s never fit,” one fan posted on X.

“Its crazy how after a loss all of a sudden these freak injuries happen,” oen fan wrote.

“nice pr kid we not falling for it,” someone else posted.

“So what was his injury in the other matches?” one fan demanded.

Time to cut him some slack?

Pulisic has had about as rough a go of things as possible since the injury, as he’s faced criticism not only from fans and media members, but also from stars from both the USMNT and USWNT.

For his part, he showed nothing but remorse after the U.S.’s disappointing finish.

“Tough to find the words,” he wrote in a post shared to Instagram. “I want to start by saying thank you to everyone who believed. The support carried us all the way through. It simply wasn’t good enough from us in the end and I wanted to deliver so much more. I still feel blessed to be a part of this team. The memories this summer will last a lifetime.

“It’s just the start for us and for this sport in America.”

It’s obvious that representing the stars and stripes means the world to Pulisic, even if his body hasn’t held up over his career the way he or anyone else has hoped. Still, there’s no question that when his career is over, he’ll have left U.S. Soccer in a better place than he came to it.

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