Eredivisie club PSV Eindhoven confirmed on Monday that United States forward Ricardo Pepi was injured in the club's 2-1 win over Excelsior this weekend and will not play in the Champions League match against Bayer Leverkusen.
"Medical examinations have shown that Ricardo Pepi has only sustained a minor strain in his upper leg. In the coming days, Pepi will work individually on his recovery before gradually rejoining team training," PSV said in a club statement.
Pepi was starting for PSV for the fourth time this season after recovering from a knee injury suffered in a Champions League game with Liverpool in January.
On Saturday though, he had to be substituted after just over half an hour of play vs. Excelsior.
"He said he felt something, but he could continue. I don't want to take any risks when he says something like that," coach Peter Bosz said after the match. "I'm not going to take any risks at this stage with someone who has slight complaints. Further examination will have to reveal what it looks like."
Pepi, 22, had kickstarted a season earlier this month in hopes of securing a role for the United States at the 2026 World Cup.
It's still unclear whether Pepi will be available for PSV's match against PEC Zwolle on Saturday.
Pepi's injury this past January meant he missed this summer's Concacaf Gold Cup with the U.S. as well as September friendlies against South Korea and Japan.
But the former FC Dallas starlet, who has scored 13 goals in 33 appearances for the USMNT, still has time to play his way into Mauricio Pochettino's roster for the World Cup on home soil in nine months' time.