2 weeks ago
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AC Milan have been left irritated by the way certain players have been handled during the international break, in particular Christian Pulisic.
La Gazzetta dello Sport (seen below) writes that Pulisic and Adrien Rabiot are scheduled for medical checks today following respective muscle issues. The former will certainly miss the match against Fiorentina, while the condition of the latter remains to be seen.
Milan let them leave for international duty in good shape, but now they’re back with bruises (in the best-case scenario) or more serious muscle injuries, like in Pulisic’s case. Starting with the less serious: Adrien’s problem is a calf issue, a simple knock or a contracture.
The tests will provide a definitive answer, which will determine whether Rabiot is available for Sunday’s game. The player had been sidelined in the days leading up to the Iceland vs. France match, but did not participate in the match.
The French national team doctors are described as particularly scrupulous, so if the initial tests had revealed any damage, the midfielder would have returned to Milan immediately. His pain hadn’t completely subsided once he returned to Milanello, hence the need to evaluate him carefully.
Pulisic set for the sidelines
The most worrying issue is that suffered by Pulisic, the main source of the club’s irritation. While the list of players who have been sidelined while playing international football is longer, including Alexis Saelemaekers and Pervis Estupinan, it was the forward who deserved more cautious management.
By the admission of USA head coach Mauricio Pochettino himself, Pulisic arrived in less than optimal physical condition due to his left ankle, which had already forced him to sit out two league games for the Rossoneri between late August and mid-September.
The same fate befell him against Ecuador on Saturday night in Italy. Christian entered the match in the final quarter of an hour with good results. The decision to start him against Australia two days ago was risky, and he left the match after thirty-one minutes.
Caution would have dictated a different approach, especially in a friendly match of no particular importance. Instead, he was subject to a couple of rough fouls from the Australian side, and then asked to come off with what looked like a hamstring issue. All potentially avoidable.
Potential replacements
Milan are waiting for him to be examined by their own medical staff, while the club are ‘irritated’ because they believe more care should have been taken. It’s true that Pulisic is a crowd favorite in the States and everyone wants to admire him on the pitch, but his health must be protected too.
The match in which Pulisic was threatened was simply a friendly, with nothing at stake, and now Milan will pay the price. His recovery time will be clearer today and tests will determine whether he suffered a serious issue and just how serious it is.
After that, who will take responsibility for the six goals and two assists that Pulisic has already brought to the team? The battle is between Rafael Leao and Christopher Nkunku. The former returned early during the break thanks to a pre-agreement, while the latter netted for France against Iceland.
For both, it would be their first Serie A start. The other spot would go to Santiago Gimenez, who came on as a substitute in the last match against Mexico and is expected back at Milanello after another intercontinental trip.
English (US) ·