The signing of Borussia Dortmund and United States winger Christian Pulisic for a fee of £58million have been complemented by Chelsea, according to the Guardian.
Pulisic will be loaned back to Dortmund for the remainder of the season and will join Chelsea at the start of the 2019-20 season.
The 20-year-old, who has become one of Europe’s most sought-after young players at Dortmund, refused to sign a new deal with his current contract set to wind down sometime in June 2020 and German outfit couldn’t resist when Chelsea came calling with a lucrative offer.
The signing of Pulisic should come as a lovely surprise to all the Chelsea fans as the Blues have managed to land one of the best young talents in Europe amidst interest from a number of top clubs.
It is a no-brainer that someone like Pulisic can take the club to greater heights not only in the Premier League but also in the Champions League in due course of time.
Well, those who believe that the signing of Pulisic means that Chelsea are preparing for life without Eden Hazard, are in a state of illusion. In all honesty, someone like Pulisic can never be a like-for-like replacement for Hazard.
Nabil Fekir, would have in fact been a better buy but a player like Pulisic proclaims his value not as a replacement for Hazard but with his own gamut of skills.
Now, here is the big question: what can a player like Christian Pulisic bring into this current Chelsea team?
Well, considering the first 20 games of this season, the Blues have lacked creativity in the final third. Sarri’s well-organised possession-based football has allowed Chelsea to dominate the proceedings in the midfield but their chance creation in the final third has left a lot to be desired.
Now, this is where a player like Pulisic fits the bill. Although he has been termed as a winger, the American is not an out-and-out winger. He does not have the pace to wreak havoc through defences neither can he be labelled as a goal machine who can net in 20 goals in a season.
However, he is someone who is blessed with an excellent technique and boasts of an intelligent footballing mind, something which is rare to see at such a young age. He makes up for his lack of lightning pace with his agility, sharpness, vision, flawless passing and tactical awareness.
Another thing that Chelsea should be excited about is his ability to draw the defenders out from their positions with his nimble footwork and movement off the ball, traits that are a sine qua non for Sarri’s system.
Pulisic might not bring in lot of goals to the team but he can work in tandems with the likes of Hazard, Willian and Pedro to create more chances.
However, Chelsea still need a prolific centre-forward in the future to challenge for silverware.
This article was most recently revised and updated 4 years ago
