Christian Pulisic is racing to recover from a calf problem as the United States prepare for a key World Cup group match against Australia, with Brenden Aaronson and Antonee Robinson both stressing that the USA squad believe Pulisic will do everything possible to feature in Seattle on Friday.

Pulisic suffered the injury last week and is reported to have worsened it during the USA’s 4-1 victory over Paraguay, yet the staff kept Pulisic on a tailored programme and allowed only individual work on Wednesday, aiming to manage the risk while still giving the forward a chance to play against Australia.

Despite the setback, the USA medical team maintain hope that Pulisic can be involved, and Aaronson, who could step into the starting side if required, underlined how much Pulisic wants to play and how focused the squad remain on securing another result in Group D.

“We’re really hoping Christian is going to be back for the game, of course, Aaronson, who would be a potential replacement for Pulisic in the starting line-up, told reporters. I don’t really know what is going on in particular, but we know that he is going to give us his all to get back into the team and be there for the game.”

Pulisic still played a major role before half-time against Paraguay, assisting Folarin Balogun’s first goal and helping force the own goal that opened the scoring, before being withdrawn at the interval with the USA already 3-0 ahead in their opening Group D match.

The playmaker now has four direct goal contributions at World Cups, with one goal and three assists, which equals Clint Dempsey for the second-most by any USA player since 1966, while Landon Donovan leads that list with five contributions over several tournaments.

Australia, the USA’s next opponents, showed defensive resilience in their 2-0 win against Turkiye, facing 30 shots without conceding, so the USA coaching staff know that breaking through again may demand creativity and sharp finishing whether Pulisic starts or appears from the bench.

Robinson highlighted both the concern about Pulisic’s calf and the squad’s faith in the depth available, noting that there are several attacking players pushing for minutes and prepared to handle increased responsibility if Pulisic is not cleared to play from the start.

“He has not been training fully with the group yet, but we’ve got a couple of days to see where he’s at, Antonee Robinson said. Thankfully, we’ve got a lot of boys on the bench who are eager and ready to get involved in helping the team and a lot of quality. It’s a long tournament. If we don’t have him back for the game, we’re going to make sure we have him back for the rest of the way because we’re going to need him.”

Beyond Pulisic’s fitness battle, the USA’s strong start in Group D gives the squad some confidence going into the clash with Australia, yet the staff still view Pulisic as central to their attacking threat and will weigh medical advice carefully before deciding on minutes in Seattle.

The meeting with Australia is expected to test the USA’s squad depth as much as their tactical approach, with the team balancing a desire to protect Pulisic’s calf for the rest of the tournament against the benefit of having one of their most productive World Cup players available in such an important group fixture.

The USA approach Australia knowing that Pulisic’s status remains uncertain, yet the squad have opened Group D strongly, have statistical leaders such as Pulisic in form when available, and believe their depth, together with careful management of the calf injury, can sustain their campaign beyond the match in Seattle.