7M - United States Hopeful Christian Pulisic Can Recover to Face Australia

American forward Christian Pulisic is working hard to recover from a calf injury ahead of the United States' second World Cup Group D fixture against Australia in Seattle this Friday. The 27-year-old sustained the initial injury last week and aggravated it during the USA's 4-1 opening victory over Paraguay, where he set up Folarin Balogun's first goal before being substituted at half-time with his team leading 3-0.

Pulisic's contribution in that opener brought his career World Cup tally to four goal contributions (one goal and three assists), tying him with Clint Dempsey for the second-most by a USA player since 1966, just behind Landon Donovan who leads with five. On Wednesday, Pulisic trained individually away from the main squad as part of a modified schedule designed to maximize his chances of playing on Friday.

Teammate Brenden Aaronson, who stands as a primary option to replace Pulisic in the starting lineup if needed, emphasized the winger's determination to return. Aaronson noted that while he does not know the exact details of the recovery, the team knows Pulisic will give everything he can to be ready for the match.

The upcoming opponent, Australia, enters the contest following an impressive 2-0 win over Turkiye, a match in which the Australians successfully absorbed 30 shots without conceding. Despite the tough challenge and Pulisic's limited training involvement, defender Antonee Robinson expressed full confidence in the squad's depth. Robinson stated that while the team hopes to have Pulisic back for Friday, the depth of quality on the bench ensures they are prepared to secure a result and preserve their star forward for the remainder of the tournament.