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Christian Pulisic was heavily criticized for skipping the Gold Cup tournament to rest.

A rested Pulisic has scored four goals in the best Serie A start of his career.

The stellar performance has quieted critics and provides optimism for the U.S. ahead of the World Cup.

When Christian Pulisic , captain of the national soccer team, announced last spring that he would choose rest over representing his country in the CONCACAF Gold Cup — the last major tournament before next summer’s World Cup — the blowback was fierce and frequently personal.

He played a career-high 3,650 minutes for AC Milan last season and appeared in 118 games for club and country in the previous 22 months. He

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