Christian Pulisic

[Vesper 28,820]

2 hours ago, Jason said:

Lampard on Pulisic's injury...

https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/2020/01/10/frank-lampard-rules-trio-out--updates-on-january-speculation-and?_branch_match_id=744198548489059432

Guessing him starting 12 straight games - don't think he's managed that before - from October-December while still getting used to a new league, to games with higher intensity has kinda come and bit us on the arse...

just ughhhhhh

[NikkiCFC 7,952]

Who injured him? 

[Jase 43,479]

41 minutes ago, Vesper said:

just ughhhhhh

I guess the one small consolation is that the mini winter break is coming up, so he won't miss too many games. That said, he'll likely miss 5 games including the ones against Leicester and Arsenal!

[Pizy 18,368]

Well it's a good thing then that we have

*checks notes*

Ross Barkley back now to pick up the attacking slack. 😷😷😷

[Atomiswave 6,072]

Im sick of the injuries.....we cant catch no break at all.

[chippy 342]

Too many injuries to too many players these days! Overtraining or something must be causing this.

[Jase 43,479]

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/jan/10/frank-lampard-olivier-giroud-chelsea

According to the 3rd last paragraph of that article, Pulisic will be out for 2 weeks. If so, he could be back for the trip to Leicester before the mini winter break. 

[SUNZ 155]

I mean, it's not like he was setting the league on fire.0 goal contributions for god knows how long.

[Jase 43,479]

Pulisic on breaking through at Burnley, moving from US to Germany to England, being part of the young group of players under Lampard... (video interview in link below)

https://www.skysports.com/watch/video/sports/football/teams/chelsea/11905663/pulisic-premier-league-is-a-dream

He told Soccer Saturday: "Absolutely [scoring was a release]. It was my first goal and first start in a while. I was really happy when that moment happened, all those emotions hit me and you could clearly see it on my face in the celebration what it meant to me.

"The day just couldn't have gone any better, everything seemed to go my way. With experience of games and good performances, you start to gain more confidence.

"Having the confidence of your team-mates and coaches can help so much so I think that helps and pushes me forward."

...

"I moved around a lot as a kid which I think helped me out a bit," he said. "I've had a lot of life experiences, moving and changing clubs, being in different places.

"Obviously I was very young at Brackley Town so I don't have the best memories of it but I do remember it was a great time.

"It was a big jump me going to Germany. It was my first time away from family, being in Europe and not speaking the language. All those experiences are what I believe helped me to get here so I'm really happy.

"London is an amazing city. Coming from a slightly smaller town like Dortmund to London has been big. Getting to see the culture, seeing how big football is - the Premier League is incredible and it's huge here.

"It means everything to me. To be part of this club, this team to be in the Premier League where I always wanted to be - it's a dream for me."

...

"It's awesome, with me being a youngster as well," Pulisic added. "Being able to play with these guys and all learning together, and we have some more experienced players as well. It's a really great mix and it helps us to learn a lot and we push the old guys too!

"Obviously Lampard was a big player at Chelsea. I watched him growing up so finding out he was going to be my coach is pretty cool. It's been great. He's very intense, the training sessions are very intense too and I think that shows in our style of play - high pressing, hard to play against and that's what we want to be.

"We want to finish in a top-four spot. We want to fight for that, always be successful and finish as high as we can. That's the goal, we want to win every game, take it match-by-match and try to get results."

[Henrique 9,133]

On 06/01/2020 at 1:05 AM, Jason said:

Unless you have inside info to dispute Lampard's comments on Pulisic picking up an injury before the Arsenal and Nottingham Forest games recently, I'm not sure how you could say he's been treated unfairly.

Pulisic started 12 consecutive games in all competitions from late October till mid-December, a run that I don't even think he managed at Dortmund. He did slow down a little at the end of that run of games and it's normal that his game times are being managed because he's still getting used to the intensity of games and playing so many games in England in quick succession and has never played during this period of the season before. Even Jorginho and Mount got dropped, benched or whatever you want to call it for a few games in November/December.

If you look at the games after those 12 starts, it's hardly something to sound the alarm. Pulisic was benched/rested against Spurs and also because Lampard went with a different system, played against Southampton albeit as a sub (although that's because of Lampard's tactical naivety from previous game but that's another debate). He then picked up a cramp to his hamstring and wasn't risked against Arsenal (a sign that he's likely still adjusting to playing so many games in England and training/playing at this time of the season) and was put straight back into the starting XI at Brighton once he recovered. I'm certain that he would have played/started against Nottingham Forest were it not for the injury he picked up in training before the game. 

Every player is being treated unfairly when he is sitting on the bench to give space to Mason Mount in the starting XI. Kovacic, Pulisic and Jorginho are the big victims here.

[Jase 43,479]

Pulisic on playing for Chelsea and in the Premier League...

https://www.espn.com/soccer/chelsea/story/4033224/christian-pulisic-talks-chelseapremier-league-hat-tricks-and-whats-next-for-the-usmnt

How would you describe the first six months at Chelsea?

You know, everyone says I'm going to go into the Premier League, it's a big change, it's tough. It's a league where there's definitely a lot of games, a lot of stuff going on, and it wasn't easy for me at the beginning, of course. I think I'm really proud of how I pushed through things and then I got my opportunity, and I felt I was playing very well recently, and I'm proud. It's been great. I've been enjoying it so much. You know, the football culture here is amazing, and I'm really happy, and I'm so excited to finish off the season strong.

What, if any, surprises have there been?

I just think the wear it has on your body. I think the biggest thing I've learned is just making sure that you keep your body right, and you gotta really work on that because there's so many games. There's a lot of stuff involved. You've got to make sure that you're healthy and ready to go all the time.

I remember talking to Landon Donovan about the Premier League, and he said it was physical in a way that was impossible for someone on the outside to appreciate. Did that surprise you at all?

Physically, I don't think it's anything crazy. It definitely is a tough league. There's a lot of games, and it is physical at times, but I don't think it's impossible. But like I said, I'm doing my best, and I know I'm trying to get used to it and make sure that my body is ready for every game.

Is there anything specific that you tweaked in your regimen to try to make sure that happens?

Nothing super-specific. I think it's just going that extra mile for regeneration after games, doing the right things, eating right and just making sure that you're ready to go.

What has been the biggest difference between Dortmund and Chelsea?

I think just the soccer culture here is what I've noticed. It means so much to these people, just in the country in general, just how your team is doing, so I think that's probably the biggest thing I've noticed. Not to say that's the case in Dortmund because that was some of the most passionate fans I've ever seen, but just the culture of the whole country, what this game means even around the holidays. Everyone's always talking about football. That's definitely impressive.

You mentioned the holidays, and obviously the games come quickly during that time. Did the intensity and rapidity of games during that period surprise you at all?

Obviously, it's my first time kind of experiencing it, but it's to be expected. People have told me and people say, "Be ready." So I was expecting it. It was nothing that threw me off.

Do you feel more famous in London? Do you get recognized more than in Germany?

People will recognize me. I play for Chelsea. Like I said, so many people watch it over here. And now I definitely get recognized walking around the city at times, but I'm not one to go walking around all the time. So I don't know about feeling famous, but yeah, there's definitely a lot of people that recognize me.

What has the process of adapting to the Premier League been like, especially when you were struggling in September?

I've just been trying to learn every day, man. I mean, I'm still learning. It's my first season now, kind of halfway through, so I'm just kind of learning to take it day by day, game by game and just focusing on the next opponent and just getting ready and healthy for the next game because it's always right around the corner. It's just a lot of competition, I think, in every game, within your team, and for every game, it's just been great learning from some of my teammates. And yeah, just being here in London, I'm just kind of taking it all in.

Are there any teammates in particular who helped you navigate through things?

So many of them, guys like [Cesar] Azpilicueta, Jorginho. They're really good guys who have been here, and they've helped me out and talked me through things. It's nice to have some experienced players to help you.

You had a period when you were out of the lineup. You did at Dortmund, too, but how difficult was it to go through that at your new club and manage the expectations for this season?

I didn't expect to come here right away and have everything be perfect and come straight in and, you know, score 10 goals in my first game. I came in, and I wanted to do that right away -- of course, everyone does. But I came in, and it was realistic, and I wanted to continue to earn my position. The beginning, it wasn't always easy, and I wasn't always in the lineup, but I just kept working. I put my head down, and I just kept telling myself, "My time will come." When you do that, and you just keep working, it does [happen]. I was really happy with kind of how things went.

How gratifying was it to push through that period?

I mean, it was amazing. You can imagine that feeling of not relief, but all the hard work paying off, and everything that's led up to that moment. Like you said, not being [in] a lineup, coming in and getting an opportunity and then getting to score three goals in the Premier League, and it's just kind of a dream come true. So, yeah, I just want to have more moments like that.

You scored some goals with your head, which I don't think I'd seen you do before. Is that something you're working on, or is that something that just happened?

I think I've always had decent timing when it comes to heading, but it's not something I specifically worked on. It's not one of my strengths, but we always worked on finishing, and when it comes to your head, that's what you practice. I don't know if I'd say it's random, but it's something that I'm just going to continue to work on here and there, and it will be nice to score on some headers.

What has it been like playing under Frank Lampard at Chelsea, and what's the best piece of advice he's given you?

Him being a former player, I've watched him a lot and obviously respected him so much as a player. Now to have him as a manager has been good, and I've just been taking it all in and learning, kind of seeing what he has and what he offers to this team. It's been fun to work with a lot of these young players as well. So I think it's been a really good mix. He's told me to just keep enjoying it and be myself.

Lampard mentioned that you had a hip/groin injury. What's the prognosis on that, and how are you progressing?

It's been almost a week, and I'm just kind of taking it day by day. I'm just rehabbing every day. I'm doing my best to be back in the next week, the next couple weeks. I don't think it should be too long, so I'm just working every day, doing everything I can to be back on the pitch.

[Jase 43,479]

Lampard said Pulisic will likely be back in early February, should be ready to play again after the mini winter break. 

[Vesper 28,820]

5 hours ago, Jason said:

Lampard said Pulisic will likely be back in early February, should be ready to play again after the mini winter break. 

Frank Lampard provides Christian Pulisic fitness update ahead of Newcastle

https://www.101greatgoals.com/news/frank-lampard-provides-christian-pulisic-fitness-update-ahead-of-newcastle/

[Jase 43,479]

Good Morning America did an interview (albeit not a long one) with Pulisic...

 

[Jase 43,479]

Lampard said Pulisic will be back after the mini winter break unless he has miraculously recovered quicker than expected...

[Jase 43,479]

Lampard on Pulisic...

https://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/loftus-cheek-needs-time-but-chelsea-miss-his-goals-lampard/11b50gt85jwh01swc6mu7yrzvq

Lampard has become accustomed to playing without Loftus-Cheek but in recent weeks he has also been without Christian Pulisic. The Blues manager says there is a small chance the USMNT star could return for the match at the King Power Stadium, but that he expects he will return after the winter break.

"He is hopefully going to be training in the middle of next week," he added. "Leicester will be very tight, but hopefully after the break, it might fall at quite a nice time to get him properly match fit."

[NikkiCFC 7,952]

2 minutes ago, Jason said:

Lampard on Pulisic...

https://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/loftus-cheek-needs-time-but-chelsea-miss-his-goals-lampard/11b50gt85jwh01swc6mu7yrzvq

 

 

20-25 minutes from the bench on Saturday I guess. 

[Jase 43,479]

https://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/chelsea-pulisic-lampard-usmnt-injury/o59v6azwgbk51g2wm8yvu0tsi

Quote

"It is hard to answer [on when he will be back]," Lampard told reporters at the King Power Stadium. "We tried to get him out this week and step it up a little bit but we had to pull out of that. So the break might have come at a good time because it buys us a couple of weeks.

"I won't have an answer till we're back training. Yes, [we miss him] because he's a quality player and was having a really good patch pre-Christmas. But others have to stand up too. But, of course, we'll be happy to have him back."

"We tried to get him out this week and step it up a little bit but we had to pull out of that" Greeeaaaat...what's happened now? Another muscle injury in training?! 🙄