Christian Pulisic has downplayed the controversy between himself and Mauricio Pochettino, saying his relationship with the United States coach is good.

A star USMNT player, Pulisic decided to skip the Concacaf Gold Cup to rest after two long seasons with AC Milan. He offered to play in a pair of friendlies ahead of the tournament, which Pochettino rejected because he wanted to keep one group together. Pulisic was then criticized by some former American players.

Pulisic returned to the national team this month and started in a pair of friendlies, assisting in the second goal in Tuesday night’s 2-0 win over Japan.

“We have good conversations,” Pulisic told reporters of his relationship with Pochettino. “Honestly. Probably what you guys experience and what the media sees is a bit not exactly what we experience. Things are good. We spoke. We had a normal camp and everything is good between us, good between the team.

“There’s probably not as much drama as you guys think there is.”

The winger, who turns 27 on Sept. 18, made his national team debut in 2016 and has 32 goals in 80 international appearances. He scored the lone U.S. goal at Trinidad on the night the Americans failed to qualify for the 2018 tournament and scored in the 1-0 win over Iran at the 2022 World Cup.

“I love this team. It’s everything to me,” he said. “I’ve been here for quite a long time. I’m getting to see some new guys, getting to bond with some old players. Even seeing [Cristian] Roldan again, it’s so cool for me.

“For me personally, I don’t feel like a step was lost.”

Pulisic had not spoken with reporters since last spring.

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In explaining in June why he wouldn’t accept Pulisic for the friendlies against Turkey and Switzerland, Pochettino said: “I am the head coach. I am not a mannequin.”

“I think it’s behind us, all that happened in summer, and I think now we need to look forward,” Pochettino said last month after announcing his September roster.

“We all made a mistake in some time, because we read the situation in a different way,” Pochettino added last Friday. “The most important is that when you are intelligent people, if we want to move on and do the right things — I want to be intelligent.”

Pochettino had said ahead of camp that he did not speak with Pulisic over the summer.

“Obviously, national team can be tough because you don’t spend day-to-day together,” Pulisic said. “So I think in the camps we’ve come in, got to know each other and starting to just, yeah, learn each other, learn the team, and, yeah, how we can both help each other as best we can to go forward and try to win. So, I’d say it’s good.”

Goals from Alejandro Zendejas and Folarin Balogun led the United States men’s national team to a 2-0 victory over Japan in a friendly at Columbus, Ohio’s Lower.com Field on Tuesday.

Following Saturday’s 2-0 loss to South Korea, the USMNT quickly bounced back with a more proactive attack through an experimental 3-4-3 formation. In a first half that included 63% possession, the home side created danger through high-pressing fullbacks Max Arfsten and Alex Freeman. After a clever dribble from Arfsten in the 30th minute, the 24-year-old launched a cross that found Zendejas, who impressively volleyed the ball into the back of the net.

The U.S. continued its attacking influence in the second half.

In 64th minute, the Americans doubled their lead after a pacey run from Christian Pulisic led to an assist for Balogun’s goal. Despite Japan shaking things up with second-half subs that wrestled back some of the momentum, the 2-0 result was cemented by the final whistle for the home team that had a late second wind in the dying minutes of the match.

Looking ahead in their ongoing World Cup preparation, coach Mauricio Pochettino and his U.S. roster will take part in friendlies next month against Ecuador on Oct. 10 and Australia on Oct. 14.

Manager rating (scale of 1-10)

Mauricio Pochettino, 8 — Credit where credit is due. Pochettino took a tactical gamble after not only ringing in five different changes from his previous XI but also testing out a 3-4-3 formation. Sure, it wasn’t perfect, there were some questionable defensive moments in the new setup and goalkeeper Matt Freese was kept fairly busy by Japan’s opportunities. Nonetheless, the overall performance is a step forward after the loss to South Korea.

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USMNT Player ratings (0-10; 10 = best; 5 = average)

GK Matt Freese, 9 — USA’s starting spot in net appears to be his to lose after earning a clean sheet thanks to his six saves. He fumbled the ball during one of those interventions, but it didn’t end up hurting the scoreline.

DF Tim Ream, 6 — An inconsistent but decent evening for the captain. While he was a vital distributor that was able to get forward, Ream also found himself losing aerial deals and occasionally chasing attacking players.

DF Chris Richards, 7 — Not bad from the Premier League player who added more confidence to the backline. Provided crucial interventions but also had some imprecise passes going forward.

DF Tristan Blackmon, 6 — An improvement after his shaky debut last week. Although his decision-making may not be at an elite national team level, Blackmon still dished out some important clearances.

MF Max Arfsten, 8 — Looked much more comfortable in an advanced role. Wasn’t the strongest during defensive moments, but that may not matter much when you consider his attacking presence that created the assist for the first goal.

MF Cristian Roldan, 6 — A mixed bag from the central midfielder that was able to win back possession, but also didn’t regularly win his duels in the heart of the XI.

MF Tyler Adams, 7 — It wasn’t a vintage Adams performance, but it was still a big improvement from last week. Some crucial interventions in the midfield and plenty of accurate passing.

MF Alex Freeman, 7 — Granted, Freeman wasn’t superb defensively and could have done a better job with his distribution, but he should hold his head high with the ground he covered on the right flank and his overall involvement in the attack. A promising 90+ minutes.

FW Christian Pulisic, 9 — Roamed around, created his own opportunities with recoveries, dropped deep and then clinched the well-earned assist for Balogun’s goal.

FW Folarin Balogun, 8 — A clear upgrade over Josh Sargent. Balogun linked well with the frontline and created plenty of danger with his attacking presence. Briefly went quiet before scoring the second goal of the match.

FW Alex Zendejas, 9 — Zendejas dove into a tackle that earned a yellow card early on but quickly bounced back with his goal and clever movement in the final third. A statement performance from the highly involved Club America winger.

Substitutes (players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)

FW Diego Luna, 8 — An energetic cameo from the young player that was a focal point in the buildup and almost earned an assist in the final minutes.

MF Jack McGlynn, 8 — Nearly scored twice, with the second shot rocketing off the crossbar.

MF Sergiño Dest, 7 — Provided the pass that led to McGlynn’s shot that hit the crossbar. Another player that could benefit from Pochettino’s change in formation.

MF Luca de la Torre, 7 — Accurate with his distribution and almost secured an assist from McGlynn’s first short-range opportunity.

FW Damion Downs, N/A — Subbed on in the 79th minute.

DF Nathan Harriel, N/A — Subbed on in the 84th minute.