Christian Pulisic’s ankle forced him out of Monday’s World Cup Round of 16 loss to Belgium early in the second half.

One former United States men’s national team icon said he would have handled things much differently. On top of that, he said Pulisic just has not performed well enough in the big games.

Landon Donovan, one day after the USMNT’s ugly 4-1 loss that saw its World Cup dreams get dashed, spoke on his “Unfiltered Soccer” podcast with former goalie Tim Howard and said Pulisic just hasn’t been the star player America has needed.

Donovan, who admitted he played poorly in the 2006 World Cup and was crushed after being roundly criticized for it, said Pulisic’s tournament was “disappointing.”

Pulisic sat out last year’s Gold Cup in hopes of being more ready for this year’s World Cup in the United States, but injuries limited him on the field, and he notched just one assist over four games.

“In the end, he’s your best player, he’s your star player, and it just didn’t happen for him,” Donovan, the Fox Sports analyst, told Howard, his former USMNT teammate. “I want to be careful because I’m sure people are piling on him, a lot of it he deserves, of course. That’s part and parcel with this role. It’s just disappointing, I was waiting for a moment for him … and it just didn’t happen.”

“I’m starting to look back, Tim — it’s more than just a trend now. It is,” Donovan added. “Like, when the games are easy, and it’s a home qualifier, and it’s Jamaica, yes. But in the big moments and the big games, he just hasn’t — I’m not criticizing, I’m just saying it factually. He is who he is at this point.”

Pulisic suffered a calf injury during the USMNT’s World Cup opener against Paraguay, forcing him to sit out a win over Australia. He returned for the final group stage game against Turkey and played in both knockout round games, but left in the 59th minute on Tuesday after injuring his ankle shortly before Belgium scored its third goal on a misplay by goalie Matt Freese — essentially the dagger.

Pulisic, hobbling on the field, eventually came off as the game was all but over.

“The reality is, he came out of a World Cup knockout game at home, with his leg still intact. Because you would have had to f–king drag me off the field,” Donovan said. “And I would have punched the doctor in the face and said, ‘You’re not taking me off the field. Put whatever you need to put in me, and I’m staying on the field.’”

Pulisic has been roundly criticized across the soccer world, including by former U.S. women’s national players Carli Lloyd and Sydney Leroux.

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Pulisic said on Fox after the loss Tuesday that he will now be able to give his ankle injury proper rest.

“It’s just frustrating to end like that, of course,” he said. “But now I have time to rest. I feel it’ll be OK.”