Is Christian Pulisic playing tonight in the USMNT World Cup debut vs Paraguay? | OneFootball

The World Cup has officially begun. The USMNT is moments away from its tournament debut against Paraguay. Mauricio Pochettino recovered an important player with the latest injury update from Chris Richards.

In a tournament already plagued by injuries, Pochettino does not want any surprises during the pre-match warmup.

The USMNT is widely considered the favorite to finish atop Group D, but to achieve that goal, it must first get past Paraguay, the most defensively solid team in the group.

The question here is whether Christian Pulisic will participate in the USMNT World Cup debut tonight against Paraguay?

Is Christian Pulisic playing tonight against Paraguay?

The USMNT faces the South American nation at 9 p.m. ET on SoFi Stadium (Los Angeles). Given the stakes, Mauricio Pochettino needs to ensure a strong start to the competition by fielding his strongest lineup from the outset.

For this, Christian Pulisic, the silent captain, will be on the USMNT starting offense. Many reports suggest that Pulisic will share the offensive front with Bolagun and Tilman.

In reality, the US team has its toughest group match in a few hours, because Paraguay is a defensive, physical team.

The Albirroja hasn’t qualified for a World Cup since 2010, so you can count on them to defend each ball with their hearts, as they won’t waste this opportunity.

However, Paraguay has the same problem as the US: space for defense. Both teams struggle to defend the space behind their fullbacks, making wing attacks a likely focal point for each side.

The USMNT’s speed and dynamism give them an edge in attack, whereas Paraguay favors a more direct and vertical approach.

Still, it's not Mission Impossible, and with the help of Pulisic up front, the US soccer team will break the score in the first half.

After that, they must maintain the result, but without sitting back and allowing the opponent to dictate play.