Christian Pulisic has been wrapped in cotton wool ever since the penalty drama ensued with his AC Milan teammates. Having been denied the chance to take the kick from the spot twice, the USMNT superstar has found himself in the bosom of the soccer community, which is questioning his treatment among his European counterparts. Even Mauricio Pochettino shares a similar yet different concern regarding his star player, noting that Pulisic ‘arrived a little bit tired‘ for the October friendlies.

With great enthusiasm, Mr. Captain America is gearing up to face Panama and Mexico, fueled by his impressive form throughout the season. Aside from standing as the top scorer in Serie A, Pulisic has notched over 6 goals and 2 assists for Milan in both the Italian league as well as the Champions League. This remarkable form only forces Paulo Fonseca to feature him in every game.

The only key problem is that the forward himself may not be able to catch up with so many games. “He’s playing every single game, every single minute,” said Pochettino ahead of the Panama clash. “That is also a thing that we are a little bit worried. Sometimes we need to protect [him]. We’ll see because he arrived a little bit tired.”

Everyone knows that Pulisic has often been susceptible to injuries very quickly. Also, losing their star forward due to fatigue or potential injury is something that the Stars and Stripes won’t be interested in. Luckily, Pochettino has a solution to every problem: “[We need to] build a very good relationship with the club [AC Milan] and try to help.”

“And when we really need him, he needs to be in form, happy, strong and the quality is there, because he has an enormous talent. He’s a fantastic player,” concluded the Argentinian tactician, as compiled by @USMNTOtaku and via Pro Soccer Wire.

Part of the need to protect Pulisic is not just due to him being over-exhausted or over-utilized; rather, it stems from his recent penalty fiasco with his AC Milan teammates. Despite being the designated penalty kicker, Pulisic was not allowed to take two spot kicks, contributing to Paulo Fonseca’s side’s 2-1 loss against Fiorentina. For that reason, Pochettino has been assigned a special task.

Mauricio Pochettino must ’empower’ Christian Pulisic

USA icon Herculez Gomez recently encouraged Mauricio Pochettino to help Christian Pulisic reach his full potential, similar to how Jurgen Klinsmann did with Clint Dempsey, a player, who has “always been that guy that prefers to talk on the field with his feet.” On top of that, Gomez also believes the USA is fortunate to have Pulisic, who is comparable to Dempsey.

“The best possible Clint Dempsey type of way, I think we’re seeing that in Christian Pulisic right now,” said Herc Gomez in the latest episode of Rog Bennett-hosted Men in Blazers. “Maybe that started with Gregg Berhalter, but Mauricio Pochettino has to continue that, has to empower Pulisic.”

It seems the former Tottenham boss has another key task: to bring out a never-before-seen personality trait in Christian Pulisic while simultaneously protecting him from injury. It remains to be seen how he will accomplish this.