U.S. international star Christian Pulisic won't make a return to the Milan side this weekend, manager Paulo Fonseca announced on Saturday. The American had an outside chance of making an appearance for the Rossoneri, after recovering well from a calf tear. However, an ankle injury, picked up towards the end of his recovery, will rule him out.
Fellow USMNT midfielder Yunus Musah will also remain on the sidelines. Musah has missed the last two games with an unspecified muscle injury, and won't be able to recover in time for Sunday's fixture.
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THE BIGGER PICTURE
Pulisic's continued absence could be a real problem for Milan, who have relied heavily on the American over the course of the last 18 months. They have won just one of three Serie A contests without him, and will also miss dangerous winger Rafael Leao - according to Fonseca.
WHAT FONSECA SAID
The manager offered an update on Pulisic's injury in a pre match press conference, admitting that he might have been able to play a role on Sunday: "I expected that we could have Pulisic [for the Roma game]. He is fine but these last two days he has an ankle problem, which is another one. He hasn’t trained with us. It is a problem that arose during the recovery process. He is not ready for tomorrow, not even for the bench. Not for the previous problem but this new one that has come up."
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WHAT NEXT FOR PULISIC, MUSAH?
Fonseca didn't offer any more specifics as to when Pulisic or Musah might return. After Sunday, Milan will face Juventus in the Supercoppa Italiana semi final in Riyadh.