Christian Pulisic is ready to shoulder the burden of US hopes in home World Cup opener vs Paraguay

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IRVINE, Calif. (AP) — Christian Pulisic is the most accomplished and most famous player on his national team at the exact time when his nation is hosting a World Cup.

Only a handful of prominent players in the past few decades have faced this confluence of talent and timing. They include a selection of generational greats: Zinedine Zidane for France in 1998, Michael Ballack for Germany in 2006, Neymar for Brazil in 2014.

Pulisic's U.S. teammates recognize the extraordinary burden he is carrying while the Americans prepare for their World Cup opener Friday night against Paraguay. From the field to the back row of the stands, everyone is looking to Pulisic for leadership and goals, hoping his full decade of international success with club and country will propel a middling soccer nation to new heights on home soil.

“I can't even imagine the weight that's on his shoulders,” teammate Tyler Adams said. “From such a young age, he was the hope of American soccer.”

Pulisic does not shy from the spotlight that will glare more brightly than ever in the next few weeks. In fact, he repeated Thursday that this challenge is “what I've always wanted.”

Now 27 years old, Pulisic has enough achievement and enough faith in his teammates to focus on how far the Americans can go, not how far they might fall.

“I don’t feel a difference in weight,” Pulisic said at the U.S. training base in Orange County. “I’m not sure. Maybe less. I just feel like there’s so many good players around me. I genuinely don’t feel like I have to do anything on my own. I’m going to give it the best I can. I want to help the team, and they expect a lot out of me, but with the guys I have around me, it makes it a lot easier for me.”

Pulisic was already the center of the U.S. hopes and aspirations when this World Cup was awarded to North America eight years ago, and his status hasn't changed. A nation that had struggled to produce elite players finally created a star in this slick, creative midfielder from Hershey, Pennsylvania, who has gone on to a decade of European club success.

National team progress has been more difficult to come by during Pulisic's first decade, but he is still considered the most consistently dynamic player in the American program — despite his 18-month goal drought in a U.S. shirt that only ended May 31.

Adams, the 27-year-old Bournemouth midfielder, has been right alongside Pulisic for most of this ride.

He watched in awe as the 17-year-old Pulisic made his senior U.S. debut in late 2016. Those Americans failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, but Pulisic quickly became a vital component of the group.

“(Pulisic was) the best player on the field at 17 years old, and the person that they rely on, (and) it’s been since then that they’ve relied on him,” Adams said. “Now, we have weapons around him to kind of relieve that, but he’s a star. Not just for the U.S. national team, but in world football. He’s that good. We rely on him in big moments, but that being said, I hope he doesn’t feel the pressure to carry it all. Just to be himself and grow into each game.”

Pulisic finally made his World Cup debut four years ago in Qatar, contributing a vital goal and an assist. But the U.S. scored just three goals in its four games before going home in the knockout round.

With that experience in mind, Pulisic knows the Americans must step up quickly at home — and their opening matchup is far from a pushover.

Paraguay qualified for its first World Cup since 2010 with strong defensive organization, potent counterattacks and a promising new generation of players leading the way. The U.S. got a break last week when gifted Strasbourg playmaker Julio Enciso was injured, likely sidelining him for at least this match.

“It has that big-game feel, for sure,” Pulisic said. “But in some ways, I feel a little bit more relaxed because I've been there before. We've played in a match like this. I think the experience has calmed me down a little bit.”

Pulisic became known across the world when he moved from Dortmund to Chelsea in 2019. He was part of the Blues' Champions League winners in 2021, becoming only the second American to claim the ultimate club trophy, before moving in 2023 to AC Milan, where he remains a vital player for another major club.

Pulisic's club success is something only a handful of Americans have ever done.

There's something else only one U.S. team has ever done, and it was back in 2002: win a knockout-round World Cup game.

After falling short four years ago, Pulisic is eager to do it at home.

“It feels similar, but with a bit of that comfort of being in America,” Pulisic said. “It feels great having the people you love around you. It makes it that much more special.”

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AP World Cup: https://apnews.com/fifa-world-cup