Christian Pulisic has explained how “pressure” impacted his “difficult” spell at Chelsea, with the USMNT star now thriving again at AC Milan
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Joined Premier League giants in 2019Won the Champions League during four-year spellLeft for Italy in 2023 & rediscovered sparkFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
United States international Pulisic moved to Stamford Bridge in 2019 having initially proven his worth in Europe with German giants Borussia Dortmund. He would become a Champions League winner while in west London, with the history books being rewritten there, but scored just 26 goals through 145 appearances.
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Issues with form and fitness did Pulisic’s cause few favours, as a starting berth became difficult to nail down, and the decision was taken to embrace a new challenge in 2023 when leaving England and moving to Italy. The 26-year-old forward is now playing with a smile on his face at San Siro – despite currently nursing a knock.
WHAT PULISIC SAID
Pulisic has told of his reversal in fortune: “It’s not to say it’s easier now (at Milan) than it was with Chelsea, but there was a time in Chelsea where I felt on top of the world and I was playing great and that confidence and that no-fear mentality was easy to have. And there was also a time when that was extremely difficult because I wasn’t getting the time. I felt pressure that I needed to do more when I did get on the pitch in some kind of way. Now, I’m in a really good head space where I feel quite confident. I feel a lot of trust from the club in a lot of ways.”
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Pressed further on whether those struggles represented the first setback of his senior career, Pulisic added: “For sure, it was difficult. I became very used to my environment in Chelsea. I learned so much, won a lot and was really happy with how things went in certain ways. But when it’s time for a change, you can feel it with all of your being. If I wanted to reach that next level, this is a step that I had to take.”
