Christian Pulisic

[OneMoSalah 8,778]

2 hours ago, Jason said:

Not sure what's worse - people saying he was a marketing purchase or that he needed to go out on loan!

Yeah totally agree. Madness.

To be honest and I know this could seem hugely controversial but at the rate he is going and with his willingness to run in off the wing to more central areas, I think he will end up scoring more goals per season than Eden’s highest total in a league season here in the next 2 seasons. 

He has that real desire to get into the box and get shots off as quickly as he can, as we seen for his goal tonight. He sucked Ward in and as soon as he made that half yard, buried it. How often have we seen Willian do that then piss about with it? Or Eden at times in the past? Or other wingers? He looks like he can be ruthless. Not to the levels of the two who have been running the show forever but he strikes me as someone who when hes on the left and gets inside near the box or inside it, he has the same desire as an Arjen Robben or someone to try get a shot off early if he can make the space. Obviously he can also create not saying he cant but I think he can be seen more as a goalscoring winger with a few more tweaks and continuous improvement.

I still think he can get another 3 or 4 goals before the seasons finished easily too. What has impressed me even more is his variation of finishing and with both feet too, tonights goal was more power, the goal v City was much more of a controlled finished. His goals v Burnley etc too were all different and he has scored off both feet this season and also with his head. These sort of traits in a wide player are extremely good. As I said up there mentioning Robben or someone in that mould. Not saying hes at that level yet no but he has a great future and will be his own type of player regardless. His all round game is potentially very complete.

[Vesper 28,853]

2 hours ago, OneMoSalah said:

Wheres the poster who was saying “only signed for marketing purposes” now?

😂

many were

and  it was not the ONLY reason he was signed, but is was a factor

I am just glad to see him playing off the charts 

 

The reason Chelsea sealed Christian Pulisic transfer deal revealed by Bruce Buck

CHELSEA secured the services of Christian Pulisic for next season and club chairman Bruce Buck has revealed why they were interested in the midfielder.

https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1115262/Chelsea-Christian-Pulisic-transfer-US-tour-2019-Bruce-Buck

snip

And it is the player’s nationality that was a factor in the deal revealed Buck, who was also born in the United States.

Chelsea are hoping Pulisic will help expand their fan base in the US and Buck has his sights set on “middle America” as he claims the club are strong on both coasts.

"He's a personable boy. He's well-liked in this country," Buck said about Pulisic to The Associated Press.

"So of course I would expect him when we come here and play some friendly matches, which is what our objective is in the summer of 2020.

“I think he will be helpful."

Manchester United are the most watched Premier League club this season, followed by Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea in fourth place.

[Blue Armour 4,289]

3 hours ago, OneMoSalah said:

Him and Willian have been carrying us for a few games now. Rest need to take a leaf out their books.

Rest, especially Hudson Odoi

[Atomiswave 6,072]

Christian Pulisic has already doubled his best-ever league scoring season after bagging his 8th Premier League goal against Palace 🔥

[Jype 6,398]

9 minutes ago, Atomiswave said:

Christian Pulisic has already doubled his best-ever league scoring season after bagging his 8th Premier League goal against Palace 🔥

Only started 16 games too, with 5 additional appearances off the bench. All this amounts to a goal or assist every 140 minutes or so and that's not even counting the penalties / dangerous free kicks he's earned that have resulted in goals.

If he can stay fit next season, I wouldn't rule out Pulisic scoring ~15 goals in the league. 

[Atomiswave 6,072]

27 minutes ago, Jype said:

Only started 16 games too, with 5 additional appearances off the bench. All this amounts to a goal or assist every 140 minutes or so and that's not even counting the penalties / dangerous free kicks he's earned that have resulted in goals.

If he can stay fit next season, I wouldn't rule out Pulisic scoring ~15 goals in the league. 

I hope so man, as long as he stays injury free he will have a great chance of that.

[King Kante 1,483]

18 hours ago, OneMoSalah said:

Yeah totally agree. Madness.

To be honest and I know this could seem hugely controversial but at the rate he is going and with his willingness to run in off the wing to more central areas, I think he will end up scoring more goals per season than Eden’s highest total in a league season here in the next 2 seasons. 

He has that real desire to get into the box and get shots off as quickly as he can, as we seen for his goal tonight. He sucked Ward in and as soon as he made that half yard, buried it. How often have we seen Willian do that then piss about with it? Or Eden at times in the past? Or other wingers? He looks like he can be ruthless. Not to the levels of the two who have been running the show forever but he strikes me as someone who when hes on the left and gets inside near the box or inside it, he has the same desire as an Arjen Robben or someone to try get a shot off early if he can make the space. Obviously he can also create not saying he cant but I think he can be seen more as a goalscoring winger with a few more tweaks and continuous improvement.

I still think he can get another 3 or 4 goals before the seasons finished easily too. What has impressed me even more is his variation of finishing and with both feet too, tonights goal was more power, the goal v City was much more of a controlled finished. His goals v Burnley etc too were all different and he has scored off both feet this season and also with his head. These sort of traits in a wide player are extremely good. As I said up there mentioning Robben or someone in that mould. Not saying hes at that level yet no but he has a great future and will be his own type of player regardless. His all round game is potentially very complete.

Personally I have been impressed with him since I saw him the first time down SB (I have a season ticket). I had seen him a little at DM and I thought that whilst he had a lot of potential he also wasn't all that clinical (although I realised he did have very good reading of the game as he has always known when to lay the ball off when someone else has a better chance.) 

However, when I saw him play live what struck me was his desire and how quick he actually was. I have been fortunate to witness the debuts of Robben, Hazard and Pulisic and whilst I still rate Robben as having biggest first impression on me but I would definitely say that Puli's was second (even if Hazard was more involved in the game for his.) 

Lastly, what I loved about last nights finish was how it contrasted with his one against City. Last nights finish was a controlled power hit with his left, whilst he one against City was a cultured curler at speed with his right. The difficulty level of both shots were both reasonably high, yet he executed both perfectly, now that is really special as normally you would expect them to come from his stronger foot. As ever we need to see how he develops and if he he can keep himself fit before we all get too excited about him but in his current form he is showing a very high ceiling. 

[Jase 43,479]

https://www.chelseafc.com/en/news/2020/07/09/pulisic--every-touch--every-stat

The club's video editor has been busy. 

[NikkiCFC 7,953]

 

[OhForAGreavsie 5,892]

On 08/07/2020 at 1:32 AM, Vesper said:

and  it was not the ONLY reason he was signed, but is was a factor

Is the correct answer.

[Magic Lamps 11,655]

It’s amazing that he just needs 5 more goals here to eclipse the overall tally of his entire Bundesliga career. In only a fifth of the number of Games. 
Facing the step up to a harder league, some fail or stagnate...and some just fucking own it. 

[Jase 43,479]

9 minutes ago, Magic Lamps said:

It’s amazing that he just needs 5 more goals here to eclipse the overall tally of his entire Bundesliga career. In only a fifth of the number of Games. 
Facing the step up to a harder league, some fail or stagnate...and some just fucking own it. 

Nah, the Premier League is a pub league. The Bundesliga is better. 

[Jase 43,479]

Christian Pulisic tells Sky Sports how he learned from early-season struggles, made sure he'd hit the ground running after lockdown, and what Frank Lampard's side need to become Premier League contenders... (more on stats in link below)

https://www.skysports.com/football/story-telling/11668/12025231/christian-pulisic-on-restart-form-with-chelsea-and-premier-league-dreams

"I always had that mindset: it was going to start back up and I was going to be ready."

Christian Pulisic has hit the ground running since the Premier League restart. Arguably the form player in the top flight since football resumed, the Chelsea attacker has scored three goals, won two penalties, and helped the Blues up to third in the table.

Speaking with Sky Sports last week, his manager Frank Lampard praised the 21-year-old's attitude. "He's come back really hungry," said the Chelsea boss. "He's come back with real desire about him and a sharpness in his game." There's no doubting the American was desperate to get back on the pitch after a longer layoff than most.

Injured in early January, Pulisic was just returning to fitness when the coronavirus lockdown suspended the Premier League in March. But patience, persistence and a lot of hard work during the break has allowed him to now demonstrate the fantastic ability he has.

"I had that first game on my mind," he tells Sky Sports, when asked how he got himself physically and mentally ready to seize his opportunities after the restart. "I was really hungry the whole time to get back and get back on the field. I was training hard and I'm really happy now to be able to make an impact.

"I was able to get some work in back in the States, as well, and be able to continue to work on my game but also rehabbing and making sure I was 100 per cent fit and ready to go. So during a really tough time for a lot of people, that was the one positive thing that I could do for myself."

There's a maturity to Pulisic's mentality, perhaps honed by beginning his career as a teenager in Germany, a long way from home, and this is a young player who sees the bigger picture - on the pitch, in his own development, and in the world around him.

As well as preparing for a return to football, time back in his native Pennsylvania during the lockdown was treasured as a chance to spend rare time with family and also make a positive impact on his hometown community, with Pulisic involved in a project to deliver food packages to his local hospital.

"It was really good [to be back in the United States]," he says. "Obviously it's a lot of tough times for people all over the world during all this, so I was doing what I can when I was back home with my local hospital and helping people who were putting their life on the line and helping us through all of this.

"It's always good to give thanks and show your appreciation to people like that and also spending some time with family during tough times was also really important. Being home and being with your family is always really nice times we can cherish."

But Pulisic also had a point to prove. Signed for £58m before being loaned back to Borussia Dortmund in January 2019, there were high expectations the USA captain would offset the departure of Eden Hazard when he kicked off his Chelsea career last August.

There were flashes of his talent early on but a combination of a late start to pre-season due to USA's run to the final of the Gold Cup and the challenges of adapting to the Premier League saw Chelsea's high-profile new arrival struggle to nail down a starting spot. He made the first XI for just three of Chelsea's opening 12 Premier League and Champions League games.

An assist in the standout win away to Ajax in the Champions League in October and a subsequent perfect hat-trick at Burnley shifted the narrative, though, and by January his injury came as a real blow to Chelsea.    

"When I came in, you don't know what to expect but I was working hard through it all and wanted to be on that field," Pulisic says, as he reflects on his eventful first season in England. "I thought I had a few good games here and there. Maybe my confidence wasn't fully there, I wasn't fully ready for the whole thing.

"But I've just learned and taken every experience little by little throughout the season. I just want to continue to grow as a player. I'm feeling really good right now and my confidence is high and that's most important.

"I feel more and more trusted by my team-mates, which is really important for me and it feels great."

That scintillating form of recent weeks has Chelsea fans excited about what the future holds for their young attacker. Pulisic rejects the comparisons with Hazard, who managed nine goals in his first season with Chelsea - also as a 21-year-old - but he has a steely determination to maximise his potential at Stamford Bridge.

"He's an unbelievable player," Pulisic says of Hazard. "It's pretty obvious what he accomplished at this club and I'm not trying to compare myself to that. What's important for me now is winning games and having an impact for my team.

"I'm really happy I can do that as of recent and my style is always going to continue to be that very attacking-minded and creative kind of player. I'm happy I can help the team any way I can.

"I want to be a part of this team. Every day in training I work hard because I want to start and I want to be on the field and I want to create goals and I want to score goals. That's where I want to be. I want to continue to make a big impact every week and every game."

That's just what Chelsea need right now, with games coming thick and fast and so much riding on each fixture. With Leicester and Manchester United right behind them, there is little margin for error in the final four games if Chelsea are to finish in a Champions League qualifying spot.

A trip to a revived Sheffield United on Saturday evening - live on Sky Sports - will be another tricky test but Pulisic says Chelsea were given a wake-up call by their surprise defeat at West Ham at the start of July and are motivated to finish the season in style.

"That West Ham game just gave us that little boost and say, 'hey, we've got to be focused every single game,' and we've got to be ready to go now and get results," he said. "They're right on our tail now.

"But there's a lot of positivity. Finishing in that third spot is where we want to be, and we want to go on and win the FA Cup."

A piece of silverware and a top-four finish would be some achievement for Lampard and this young developing Chelsea squad.

Pulisic says learning from Lampard has been a real asset for the club's rising stars - "I watched him growing up; he has a lot of information he can pass on, it's awesome" - and with new signings Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech set to link up with the group ahead of next season, there is a growing sense of momentum in west London.

Pulisic is relishing the arrival of Werner and Ziyech - despite the added competition they'll bring in his favoured wide areas - and says Chelsea are aspiring to build towards the high-level consistency of Liverpool and Manchester City to become contenders for the Premier League in the near future.

"I'm excited to work with them," he says. "It's fun to play with good players, it's easy to play with them and those are two guys we know that are really talented guys so I'm really looking forward to it. We can have a really strong team next season.

"I think there's still work that needs to be done [to catch Liverpool and Man City]. You can see this year that those two, especially Liverpool, have been just so consistent and dominant and that's right where we want to be.

"We want to continue to be that consistent team week in week out, in tough games, midweek games. We want to be ready and be up for the challenge always. And that's what it’s going to take. We still have our work to do but that's where we want to be.

"We want to continue to win trophies, that's always a goal. We want to continue to be a strong team, contending for that Premier League title."

With that mix of attitude and ability, Pulisic and Chelsea have a great chance of achieving those aims. 

[Jase 43,479]

10 hours ago, Magic Lamps said:

It’s amazing that he just needs 5 more goals here to eclipse the overall tally of his entire Bundesliga career. In only a fifth of the number of Games. 

Just looked at the stats and on top of his Bundesliga record, he needs only 11 more goals to eclipse his overall goal tally for Dortmund.

DORTMUND
127 games
19 goals (13 in league)
26 assists (18 in league)

CHELSEA
29 games
9 goals (8 in league)
6 assists (2 in league)

[NikkiCFC 7,953]

I know many mentioned Kovacic as player of the year but for me Pulisic with no doubt.

Argument was minutes played before but now Kovacic has just 338 minutes more in the league.

So Pulisic, Kova and Willian (as much as I dont like him) as top 3 players this season.

 

[Jase 43,479]

For all the comparison between Pulisic and Hazard, there is one thing the former does that the latter doesn't. Defending. Pulisic might not be great at it (yet?) but he certainly is willing to get stuck in and help the team defend. 

[OneMoSalah 8,778]

38 minutes ago, Jason said:

For all the comparison between Pulisic and Hazard, there is one thing the former does that the latter doesn't. Defending. Pulisic might not be great at it (yet?) but he certainly is willing to get stuck in and help the team defend. 

Playing in a more counterattacking orientated Dortmund team probably helped that where as Hazard was afforded more of a luxury role at Lille with that regards and they were more a possession based team particularly his final season. Theres nothing wrong with that but weve also seen games (ie under Jose when Atletico put us out the CL) where Eden let his man go and it didnt help. Pulisic will get a bit mire of that freedom eventually I do feel but we have try and be a more proactive team like City or Liverpool where they do the pressure in packs very quickly after losing the ball and not sit off chasing fullbacks for instance.

[NikkiCFC 7,953]

I think wingers playing defense in overrated thing.

I mean even the worst wingers in defending cannot cost you more than 2 or 3 goals per season?

Willian is knows as best in this and even he cost us sometimes.

Example: