Pulisic returns to USMNT lineup to face Bosnia

ESPN

Jul 1, 2026, 06:45 PM ET

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Christian Pulisic was named to the United States men's national team's starting lineup for Wednesday's World Cup round-of-32 clash with Bosnia-Herzegovina after recovering from a calf injury.

The AC Milan attacker has not started for the U.S. since its World Cup opener against Paraguay on June 12, when he aggravated an injury to his left calf and was replaced at halftime.

The ailment caused him to sit out the team's second group stage match against Australia and limited him to a 32-minute stint against Türkiye in its group finale.

"I felt great in the game, the last game against Türkiye," Pulisic told reporters Tuesday. "So feeling good this week and yeah, I'm definitely ready to go for [Wednesday]."

Also returning to the U.S. lineup are midfielder Tyler Adams, forward Folarin Balogun, center back Chris Richards and left back Antonee Robinson after all four were left out against Türkiye as coach Mauricio Pochettino took precautions to avoid them getting another yellow card that would have led to a suspension.

After rotating against Türkiye, Wednesday's U.S. lineup is the same as Pochettino named for the opening 4-1 win over Paraguay.

Defender Mark McKenzie (foot) and midfielder Cristian Roldan (quad) are the only players not available for the U.S. because of injury.

The U.S. is seeking just its second knockout win at a World Cup and first since 2002. The winner of Wednesday's match will face Belgium in the round of 16 on Monday in Seattle.

ESPN's Jeff Carlisle contributed to this report.