Although it’s been more than two weeks since the United States men’s national team was sent packing from the Qatar World Cup, star forward Christian Pulisic said he still regrets the missed opportunity he had early in the team’s round of 16 game against the Netherlands.
In the third minute of the USMNT’s knockout game against the Dutch, Pulisic ended up one on one with Netherlands keeper Andries Noppert. However, Pulisic’s low, left-footed shot was kicked away by Noppert, keeping the game knotted at 0–0.
The U.S. went onto lose 3–1, but the 24-year-old Pulisic said he believes the game could have played out differently if he’d converted the early chance.
“Had I finished that chance, the game goes differently,” Pulisic said on the Indirect podcast with USMNT teammate Tim Ream. “I would love that back. I still think about it. It’s a learning experience. I think there’s a reason why it didn’t go in, things happened the way it did. It all happens for a reason.”
Just a few minutes after Pulisic’s goal-scoring opportunity, Memphis Depay put the Dutch on the board in the 10th minute. Daley Blined then added a second goal before halftime. Although Haji Wright was able to pull the U.S. back within one in the 76th minute, Denzel Dumfries scored in the 81st minute to seal the win for the Netherlands.
Pulisic may have not been able to lead the USMNT to a victory over the Netherlands, but he left Qatar having scored in the squad’s 1–0 win over Iran, which punched the team’s ticket to the knockout round. He also had an assist in a 1–1 draw against Wales.
Most importantly, Pulisic said this year’s World Cup provided a young American side with experience for the 2026 tournament, which will be hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada.
“I think my most significant takeaway would just be the experience that a lot of this team now has under their belt,” Pulisic explained. “Coming back here with my Chelsea teammates, for example, they’re all talking about like, ‘You guys actually have a good team. We didn’t know. You guys looked good. You guys looked good against England. You guys have a strong team.’
“I knew we had a strong team, and once everyone kind of came together, you could see that. And also now with the World Cup in the States next time around, I think these experiences are so important.”
