MLS: Seattle Sounders FC at D.C. United

Staff Photographer

other

Dak Prescott

Womens World Cup

The Washington Post

Contract Photographer

NWSL Royals Spirit Soccer

Hal Hershfelt

MLS: Orlando FC at D.C. United

Weston Mckennie,Christian Pulisic

Weston Mckennie, Christian Pulisic

United States v Canada - 2024 SheBelieves Cup

Stringer

MLS: D.C. United at New York City FC

NWSL: NJ/NY Gotham FC at Washington Spirit

MLS: CF Montreal at D.C. United

Carolina Core FC Diversity

For The Washington Post

MLS: Orlando City at D.C. United

Bruce Arena

Soccer: Concacaf W Gold Cup-Canada at USA

Syndication: The Columbus Dispatch

United States v Brazil: Final - 2024 Concacaf W Gold Cup

Staff

Respond to prefers-color-scheme dark in app web views

Follow section front redirects in Spectrum

Enable NLP source in PCS for load testing

Switch off the News Alerts Survey Widget when we have enough responses

Poll to determine if new LUF updates are available

Allows the winning A/B test variant to be turned on without Spectrum deployment

Show infinite scrolling sections in Assembler MultiView

Show option for NLP article summaries in Action Bar

A general feature flag for Recipe Features that aren't yet released

Feature flag for media team features that aren't yet released

Use new Orca video player for preroll plugin in Spectrum

Show the snow tracker (instead of the heat tracker) on Spectrum

The 6 best things to do with kids in the D.C. area this weekend 

The 33 best things to do in D.C. this weekend and next week

Trevor Williams’s escape act helps Nationals blank Rangers 

Young Georgians want to be part of Europe. Their government is in the way.

On Press Freedom Day, little to celebrate for Hong Kong’s journalists

Taxes are inevitable. Paying to prepare them doesn’t have to be.

Cat climbed into Amazon return box, found alive 630 miles away

Brave Little Hunter is free: Baby orca escapes lagoon for open seas

I learned to heal my sadness by cradling dying chickens 

Miss Manners: Offering my bedroom to guests

Ask Amy: My wife’s sister confessed her feelings for me

Carolyn Hax: Will request for a postnup offend much younger wife?

What’s the best bus to New York? We tested 5 for comfort and value.

You asked: Do I need a passport for my cruise?

Adaptive equipment is making national parks more inclusive

World Press Freedom Day, 2024

How Trump convinces Republicans to adopt extreme views

Campuses are grappling with the Gaza war. So are our columnists.

Chinese EVs are good for the world. Biden says they’re bad for America. 

Why the Solomon Islands election matters to China and the U.S.

Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ like China, Russia, at campaign event

That time football legend, rig-driving eligible bachelor Biden was arrested

Trump and allies say Biden pays rent for ‘illegals’ in Michigan. Not true.

Eighty percent of Ukraine-Israel bill will be spent in U.S. or by U.S. military

This masterpiece ‘Birth of Venus’ probably isn’t of Venus at all

The beginner’s illustrated guide to watching an F1 race

Wait, what is Stephen A. Smith talking about? Find out with our quiz.

NASA moon capsule suffered extensive damage during 2022 test flight

Russian state media ramping up English, Spanish presence on TikTok, study finds

Apple is behind in AI and killed its self-driving car project. What’s next?

Stephen A. Smith would like even more of your attention

Local sports networks go dark mid-game amid dispute with Comcast 

Trump

Matt Slocum

Their friendship began a dozen years ago while they were riding a team bus to U.S. youth national soccer training near Los Angeles.

“I used to sit behind him and squirt air and a little bit of water into his ear,” said the mischievous midfielder, <a href="https://www.ussoccer.com/players/m/weston-mckennie" target=_blank>Weston McKennie</a>.

McKennie was scared of elevators, so after practice, new pal <a href="https://www.ussoccer.com/players/p/christian-pulisic" target=_blank>Christian Pulisic</a> accompanied him up several flights of hotel stairs.

They stuck gum on a palm tree, wondering if the wad would still be there next time they were in camp. (It was.)

“Yeah, that is exactly how it started, him being as annoying as he is and me just putting up with it,” Pulisic said, smiling. “We were drawn to each other from a young age.”

They have grown into cornerstones of the <a href="https://www.ussoccer.com/teams/usmnt" target=_blank>senior national team</a> and key figures on Italian rivals who will collide Saturday in Turin. Six weeks before they reconnect at U.S. camp for the start of <a href="https://copaamerica.com/en/" target=_blank>Copa América</a> preparations — a major precursor to the 2026 World Cup — McKennie’s Juventus will welcome Pulisic’s AC Milan to Allianz Stadium for a Serie A showdown.

For three decades, U.S. players venturing to Europe to further their careers have landed in Germany and England. Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Belgium are also popular spots. Few have thrived in Italy, one of the continent’s big-five soccer countries boasting hallowed clubs with global followings.

Pulisic and McKennie have gone against the norm. After leaving English side Chelsea last year, Pulisic has revived his club career in Milan with personal scoring bests in league play (10 goals) and all competitions (13). He is also among the Serie A assists leaders with six.

Eighty-eight miles west in Turin, in his fourth season at Juventus, McKennie has posted seven assists — one off the league lead — and made a career-high 27 league starts. (Including Italian cup matches, he has 10 assists in 34 appearances.)

The 25-year-olds sought breakthrough seasons after Pulisic fell out of favor at Chelsea following four seasons and McKennie logged inconsistent playing time and performances at Juventus.

Pulisic said he had “lost” self-belief.

“It’s normal. It comes and goes at times in players’ careers,” he said. “We both needed to find that again, and luckily we have.”

McKennie echoed those thoughts, saying last preseason: “I looked at myself and realized I lost a little bit of belief in myself. The confidence was kind of low. Coming back, I know what I do best is work.”

McKennie said Juventus Coach Massimiliano Allegri told him, “Wes, you’ve got to start running now and you stop running at the end of the season.”

McKennie added, “So that’s kind of what I’ve been doing and just try not to be super-selfish and put the team first.”

Finding themselves on the same trajectory in Italy aligns with the deep Pulisic-McKennie bond.

Pulisic is the attacker from small-town Pennsylvania (Hershey), McKennie the midfielder from greater Dallas (Little Elm) who spent part of his youth on a military base in Germany. They were born three weeks apart in 1998.

McKennie is a free spirit who says almost anything on his mind, while Pulisic is careful with his words — though he is much more open and expressive than he was when, as a teenager, he rocketed to fame with Germany’s Borussia Dortmund and the U.S. national team.

When Serie A arranged a Zoom call last week for the pair to answer questions from U.S.-based reporters, their banter playfully illustrated their friendship.

McKennie: “<a href="https://www.minecraft.net/en-us" target=_blank>Mine[craft]</a> later?”

Pulisic: “I’m still thinking about that double yesterday.”

Jabin Botsford

After McKennie relayed the stories about their first time together at U.S. youth camp, Pulisic laughed and said, “Yeah, I mean, I wasn’t the kind of guy who would share stories like that, but I’m glad Wes now put them all out there.”

Asked what American foods he misses living in Italy, McKennie said, “Ranch dressing or Cheez-Its.”

A reporter soon visiting Milan said she would pass the crackers along to Pulisic to give to McKennie.

“You can’t give the Cheez-Its to Christian. He’ll kill ’em,” McKennie said.

“That is such a lie!” Pulisic responded.

When Pulisic was asked about AC Milan’s tactical approaches this season, McKennie interjected, “What tactic are you going to use against us?”

Pulisic deadpanned, “We’re not going to chat about that.”

With their club clash approaching, Pulisic was noncommittal about whether he prefers playing with or against McKennie.

“I think we just enjoy competing,” Pulisic said. “We’re looking forward to this.”

“I have more fun playing with him so I don’t really have to worry about him.”

They agree on their degree of satisfaction this season.

“It’s been a great test for me, but it just comes down to being given the opportunities here,” said Pulisic, who has started 27 Serie A matches after making eight starts for Chelsea last season. “I’ve had a lot of time on the field to show what I can do and been given a creative role and a lot of freedom, which has been a huge part of getting that self-belief back and growing that confidence.”

McKennie said Pulisic has “found a place he can call home.”

Antonio Calanni

While McKennie and Pulisic are employed by rival clubs, they have gained additional comfort from having teammates from the national team: Winger Tim Weah (26 matches, nine starts) has been with third-place Juventus since July, and midfielder Yunus Musah (27 matches, 10 starts) joined second-place AC Milan from Spain’s Valencia in August.

“He sleeps over my house sometimes,” McKennie said of Weah. “He sits in my massage chair and knocks out.”

With all four having started at the 2022 World Cup, U.S. soccer has gained a foothold in Italy.

“Having the seasons we’ve had and establishing ourselves in Italy definitely opens up eyes back home and people here in Italy to want to follow — at least I hope it does,” McKennie said.

Luca Bruno

Before signing with AC Milan, Pulisic gained assurances from Coach Stefano Pioli.

“He saw me fitting in right away, and that was important for me,” he said. “I wanted to feel like it was the right place for me to go and I’d be able to come here and get that opportunity.”

Aside from Serie A, Pulisic scored once in the UEFA Champions League, and following Milan’s drop into the second-tier Europa League, he scored twice.

McKennie has taken a four-year journey after arriving from Schalke in Germany, where he and Pulisic crossed paths in the Bundesliga.

“In Germany, I was the workhorse and I was running everywhere and trying to get into everything and maybe running 60 yards when I only need to run 20 and get the same job done,” he said. “So Italy definitely helped me out that way because this is a very tactical league and a very defensive league as well.”

This weekend, he and Pulisic will mix it up as both clubs seek to strengthen bids for places in next season’s Champions League. <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/soccer/2024/04/19/italy-champions-league-places/5ea1353c-fe5e-11ee-87ac-20f7e67cbe29_story.html" target=_blank>At least five</a> will advance. <a href="https://us.soccerway.com/national/italy/serie-a/20232024/regular-season/r77308/" target=_blank>Inter Milan ran away</a> with its 20th Serie A title, clinching Monday with a 2-1 victory over AC Milan.

On match day, Pulisic and McKennie will not text or chat on the phone. During the week, though, “we game when we game, we talk when we talk,” McKennie said.

Reflecting on the evolution of their careers, McKennie said, “It’s pretty funny how it worked out, but I guess it’s the universe keeping us close.”

Inducted into the Virginia DC Soccer Hall of Fame, 2013

Three-time APSE finalist

Society of Professional Journalists' Dateline Awards, first place, 2023

American University, BA in print journalism, 1988

Steven Goff has covered soccer for The Washington Post since the early 1990s. His beats include D.C. United, MLS and the U.S. national teams. He has been on assignment at every men's World Cup since 1994, plus six Women's World Cups for 14 overall.

Steven Goff

washpost

USMNT’s Christian Pulisic and Weston McKennie thriving in Italy

the-washington-post

name

prism://prism.query/site,/sports/soccer&limit=20

Soccer

Your source for DC United and MLS soccer news and information. Get the latest schedules, stats, rosters and scoreboards for Major League Soccer. Stay updated on the latest D.C. United and MLS news!

prism://prism.query/site-articles-only,/sports&limit=20

Sports

The Washington Post Sports section provides sports news, video, scores, analysis and updates about high school, college, and pro sports teams, including the Capitals, Nationals, Washington Football Team, United and Wizards. Post Sports also offers blogs and discussions about the latest sports news.