Pulisic’s Farewell to Chelsea: An Overview
In the coming days, Christian Pulisic will bring to an end his Chelsea career and join AC Milan for a fee in the region of £19mil, some £39mil less than Chelsea paid to bring the American to Stamford Bridge from Borussia Dortmund. Pulisic will leave having won a Champions League, having scored 26 goals in 145 games, but ultimately as an expensive flop who was unable to show what he was capable of consistently in the world’s toughest league.
Mercoledì ci saranno le visite mediche di #Pulisic pic.twitter.com/bAmDjErhMV
— #MilanSpace (@MilanSpace_03) July 10, 2023
The Label: An Expensive Flop
It may seem harsh to call him a flop, but unfortunately, there is no other way to view his time in West London. He did not live up to expectations, or even come close to them, and he is being sold at an enormous loss.
Is Pulisic Solely to Blame?
But is he solely to blame? No. Because it’s not a surprise, or at least it shouldn’t be. Why? There are multiple reasons.
First, we can look at his injury record while at Chelsea. Ten injuries and three spells out through illness in four years. That’s unfortunate, but was predictable. In his four years at Dortmund, he also had ten injuries and three spells out through illness. His injuries at Chelsea have been more serious, and he’s missed more games, but Pulisic was known as an injury risk when Chelsea signed him.
Christian Pulisic's time at Chelsea is coming to an end.
A move that promised so much but delivered very little, can the #USMNT's great hope revitalise his career in Milan? #CFC | #ACMilan
➡️ https://t.co/yyLHMeEbki pic.twitter.com/phYmlul53I
— The Athletic | Football (@TheAthleticFC) July 10, 2023
The Managerial Carousel
Secondly, he agreed to join Chelsea under Maurizio Sarri and while he played under three managers at Chelsea, none of them were Maurizio Sarri. Pulisic’s move to Chelsea was confirmed in January 2019, with the player remaining at Dortmund until the summer. This was done as a workaround for Chelsea’s upcoming transfer ban.
By the time Pulisic arrived in London, Sarri was gone and Frank Lampard was in charge. Sarri is a top-class coach with a history of helping diminutive pacey wingers thrive, whereas Frank Lampard is arguably the worst manager the Premier League has seen. After Lampard came Thomas Tuchel, followed by Graeme Potter, and then Lampard returned to once again inspire greatness. It’s a less-than-ideal situation for any player.
Finally, just look at the other big-money Chelsea signings in the last years of the Abramovich era. Alvaro Morata, Kepa Arrizabalaga, Jorginho, Timo Werner, Kai Havertz and Romelu Lukaku. Outside of Jorginho, that’s an expensive list of flops. Even the Italian international was pretty hit-and-miss while at the club.
Pulisic’s Struggles at Chelsea
Pulisic isn’t immune from criticism here, he had plenty of opportunities that he didn’t grasp. His attitude didn’t always seem the best, and his off-ball work left a lot to be desired. But Chelsea have undergone one of the weirdest four-year runs of any club in Premier League history, on and off the field. It was not the right environment for Pulisic to develop.
He moves to AC Milan hoping to revive his career and, who knows, perhaps he’ll return to the Premier League in years to come as a better, more developed player.
Flop? No. As you mentioned Chelsea has mediocre management/culture. Despite the actual guy with the plan for him being gone when Pulisic arrived he still played his way onto the “team” as a starter or an impact sub and played well. I put team in quotes because Chelsea is more a pile of expensive players competing with one another than it is a team. I’d say the injuries are a solid point but it looks more like he adjusted and did what he had to do and got fitter and stronger. The fact that he didn’t remain popular among Chelsea’s revolving door of managers means absolutely nothing. Going to a club with an actual plan for him will be the best thing for him and the real answer to all these questions.