It stands to reason that when Christian Pulisic burst onto the international scene, an attacking phenomenon good enough to start games for Bundesliga titan Borussia Dortmund at 17, the types of soccer in the United States native to Pulisic, and even some fanatics preached caution.
“Look, no one is more excited about this guy than me,” Michael Bradley, then captain of the US men’s national team, stepped aside to say in the spring of 2016 after writing that Pulisic should challenge for serious minutes. during the Centennial of the Copa América that summer. But how many games have you played? Let’s not get carried away yet.
Just over four years later, it’s time to say with certainty and conviction what has become increasingly obvious as Pulisic’s spectacular first season with the power of the English Premier League Chelsea comes to an end: Pulisic At the ripe old age of 21, there is The Best American Man to have Played the Most Popular Sport in the World.
This is where you point out that Clint Dempsey and Landon Donovan were still producing for their country and clubs in their 30s. That both men retired with 57 international goals and more than 100 limits for the USMNT. Both scored in multiple World Cups. It is a fair and valid argument.
It is also true that it will be years before Pulisic has a chance to match those achievements. And of course there is no guarantee that it will. Every athlete in every sport is an unfortunate injury far from the end. Pulisic’s lightweight (but fast-filling) frame and a desire to set enemies on fire with dribbling make him a magnet for rough play. And if Pulisic has taken a hit during his young career so far, it’s his tendency to miss games due to muscle disease.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp (right) gave Christian Pulisic his first major opportunities at Borussia Dortmund. (Group via REUTERS / Phil Noble)
Longevity and consistency matter when crowning the king. Under those measures, one could defend American goalkeepers Brad Friedel or Tim Howard, as well as Dempsey and Donovan, as the best male player in the US Both enjoyed long stints as a Premiership starter, both spent time wearing the number one jersey. 1 with brand name clubs.
Still, the most difficult thing to do in football is to score and create goals. And the way Pulisic has completely dominated the best league in the world since returning from his three-month coronavirus hiatus in June with its breakneck pace, balance, control in tight spaces, and the important end product is unprecedented among his compatriots. .
Pulisic has four goals and five assists in eight Premier League games since June 21. He has scored or created a goal every 63 minutes he has been on the field since Project Restart began. Add your early season production, when he came in and out of the lineup for Chelsea coach Frank Lampard, as he adjusted to a new country, a new team and a forceful new style of play, and it’s 103 minutes per goal or assist . That’s a better production rate than Jamie Vardy of Leicester, Danny Ings of Southampton or Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of Arsenal, the top three scorers in the Prem, have achieved during the 2019-20 season.
It is not just a good season, either. When Pulisic arrived in London last summer at age 20 with a whopping $ 73 million transfer fee, nearly four times the next highest price paid by an American, it was a proven product. He had 13 goals and 18 assists in 90 Bundesliga games.
He has three goals, including a game winner in the knockout stage, and five assists in 26 Champions League games. His 14 goals in 34 games internationally give him a better strike ratio for the United States than Dempsey, Donovan or Jozy Altidore.
Should Pulisic’s age and lack of World Cup experience against him be in the GOAT conversation? (The latter is not his fault; as a teenager, he was easily the best player in the USMNT during the failed 2018 qualifying cycle.) Does the lack of fans in the stadiums over the past five weeks take away the performances that seem to be getting better with every passing game? Should we wait a few more years before anointing him better?
Perhaps. This is a subjective exercise, after all. And given the way American football history is riddled with warning stories about prospects destroyed by premature and / or unrealistic hype (Freddy Adu), or who saw their once ascending careers at the top level derail when their Bodies failed them (Stuart Holden, John O’Brien), the desire for patience and perspective is understandable.
“We have a tendency, and so do I, to get ahead of ourselves,” USMNT coach Gregg Berhalter admitted in a conference with reporters Tuesday, a day before Pulisic became the first American player to score against Liverpool in Anfield. (He also collected an assist in the Blues’ 5-3 loss to the champions.) “If we had made a final judgment on Christian in the fall, we would have said, ‘Well, it’s not performing well.’ And now, suddenly, seven months later, we say it’s the best firm ever.”
Berhalter’s point is well taken, as Bradley was so many years ago. But it is becoming impossible to ignore the fact that Pulisic is blooming into a bona fide superstar before our very eyes. No American attacker before him has established himself as a key cog with one of the world’s elite teams, let alone its most dangerous player. It is in these fierce European testing grounds that world reputations are forged.
Christian Pulisic is already on the next level, and will only get better from here. It’s okay to be excited about that. Stop waiting for the other shoe to drop. Just sit back and enjoy the ride.
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