Yes, we heard. Christian Pulisic scored an Olimpico goal last night for AC Milan vs Club Brugge. A goal directly from a corner, if you will, which couldn’t have come at a better place than the UEFA Champions League. Day after day, his performance for the Rossoneri is getting top-notch. But what about the international front? Ever since he abruptly left the recent October window, things haven’t been the same for Pulisic.

Sure, he had his reasons to leave Mauricio Pochettino’s first camp after just playing 60 minutes against Panama; “Load management”, to be precise. However, his absence against Mexico isn’t settling with Kasey Keller, a game that ended in a 2-0 defeat. This only saw the USMNT icon begin his rant on Pulisic for leaving his teammates in the lurch against El Tri for the sake of his domestic side on the latest episode of ESPN’s Fútbol Americas show.

Citing the example of Luka Modric, Keller claimed that despite being 39, the Croatian plays every game for his nation. “Imagine a new Croatia manager comes in, his second game is away against Serbia. And Luka Modrić and the coach decide he’s not gonna go. There is absolutely no chance that would happen in a million years,” admitted the pundit.

Quickly shedding the spotlight on Pulisic, Keller continued, “It’s patronizing to the fans. I don’t know whose decision that was. If Christian [Pulisic] went to [Mauricio] Pochettino and asked for time off, that would be extremely worrying.” It’s not just that the USA’s best player and captain doesn’t want to face their biggest rivals that worries Keller; it’s also that the new coach himself seems perfectly content to go into such a crucial match without him.

While one would say that Pochettino’s hands must have been tied down in this situation, the former US goalkeeper had a perfect response planned that he would have given on the former Tottenham manager’s behalf.

“If I was Pochettino and I was approached by AC Milan to not take the player for this friendly, I would tell them this ”” ‘We’ve got a couple of games against Jamaica coming up. And if I don’t take him down to México, then I would like him to be released three days early, not play your last game, and I want him to do PR work for the Federation and work with our fitness coaches before the game against Jamaica’.”

If you think that was blunt, hear out the mic drop from Keller; “Milan would tell me I’m crazy, we would never do that. Then I’d ask, why should I do that for you?” concluded the former American coach. However, it’s not just Pulisic that Kasey is frustrated with!

Mauricio Pochettino slammed for his nonchalant attitude with the Christian Pulisic and Co.

In Kasey Keller’s view, the USMNT should have lost the match with more goals against Mexico. That way, the team could have gotten the necessary ‘wake-up call.’ Despite the looming 2026 World Cup, the players seem to be treating these friendly matches lightly. Keller expresses frustration over this attitude and believes Pochettino should make the most of every opportunity during each international window.

“I don’t get it. I truly, truly don’t understand it,” he said, questioning the absence of Pulisic. “What I want to see is an awakening. The tone being set right now is ‘Go back to your club, that’s more important anyway’,” added Kasey Keller.

What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments.