Christian Pulisic has been a slow burner, but Chelsea are now witnessing his full potential

[ASFN Admin]

You must be registered for see images attach

The Inside Story: How a surfer and breathing techniques helped clinch title Get unlimited access to our expert Premier League analysis with a sport-only Telegraph subscription - £40 for 12 months (less than £1 a week) While there has been justified excitement over Chelsea’s £47.5 million capture of Timo Werner, there is another recruit from the Bundesliga who clearly has a huge role to play in the Frank Lampard revolution. Christian Pulisic will have his name etched into Liverpool’s recent history as the man who played a definitive role in their 30-year wait to lift the title, with a goal which also proved he does not deserve to be a luxury squad player. Jurgen Klopp was Pulisic’s manager during his formative years with Borussia Dortmund and Chelsea are now finally witnessing the potential and ability of a player whose reputation was so high in Germany. His impact at Stamford Bridge has unquestionably been a slow burner, with a niggling abductor injury at the start of this year, and while that transfer fee of £57.6 million raised eyebrows in January 2019, his progress this year - both before and after the season was paused - is tangible. Pulisic now has eight goals for the season and is their second highest scorer in the league, despite starting less than half of the games under Lampard. He was desperately close to adding his ninth, and earning the freedom of Liverpool, after rounding Ederson 19 minutes from time, only to agonisingly watch his shot cleared off the line by Manchester City defender Kyle Walker. There was also another chance four minutes later, when Pulisic was denied at the end of a remarkable goalmouth scramble which led to the handball by Fernandino and subsequent dismissal. And while the arrivals of Werner and Hakim Ziyech are eagerly awaited ahead of the next campaign, there is also more to come from the American. Pulisic is only 21 years old, and does not deserve to become on the periphery of the more recent big buys.

Continue reading...