AC Milan made 10 signings during the most recent summer transfer window, and you can make a very strong case for Christian Pulisic being the best so far.
MilanNews recall how it was back on 13 July 2023 that Milan officially announced the acquisition of Pulisic from Chelsea for a fee of around €20m. The American winger was one of the most exciting signings given his past exploits, potential for growth and the fee paid but also on a commercial level.
The expectations on him for what he could show on the pitch were already quite high, but the pleasant surprise of the first part of the season was seeing him actually go beyond what was expected.
Looking purely at statistics, Pulisic has so far been the best purchase of the summer mercato. Between Serie A and the Champions League he has already scored seven goals (only one less than Marcus Thuram, who chose Inter over Milan) plus four assists.
He has not amassed double figures in goals and assists since 2019-20, which was his first at Chelsea following his €60m move from Dortmund. In December he got three goals and two assists – more goal contributions than any other player in Serie A in the same period.
The weight of Pulisic’s contributions must be mentioned too, as his goals against Genoa and Sassuolo directly earned six points, while on two other occasions it was a goal of his that broke the deadlock (against against Torino and against Lazio).
In a couple of matches his goals changed the tide of the match (the 2-1 against Frosinone plus the equaliser against Newcastle in the Champions League). The only goal that didn’t have an impact on the result was the one against Bologna, but it did kill the game off.
Off the pitch, there is a reason why Giorgio Furlani but above all Gerry Cardinale pushed for his arrival: the Rossoneri owner strongly wanted him for his commercial potential.
Pulisic – an American just like Cardinale – significantly helps spread the Milan brand around the world , increasing the club’s exposure across the globe, especially in the vast US market. A limited investment with enormous potential, something which sounds very familiar.
Hit the ground running. Shows great promise and State-side marketability doesn’t hurt. Hopefully they come to the States every summer. $$$
Definitely the best purchase so far and knock on wood, has managed to stay relatively healthy.
it funny how all of us have not talk about his health due to fear on jinxing it
Well I’d like to think he has this sort of return after spending so much on him. Its when we spend a bunch of $20ms here and there and haven’t shown much
He’s the only worthy player from summer shopping spree. Rest are bench extentions.
‘ders also looks more and more comfortable in the mid
Yes, he is doing great goalwise but how useful he really is on the wing. Not really, he runs back from defenders. He should become a striker as it seems to suit him more, most of his goals came from him being in central positions and playing like he is a second striker…
Ideal for a 2 striker formation, he would be great.
And what the great stats don’t show is that Pulisic is a bit like the oil lubricating the whole machine. He is absolutely a team player unlike the more talented Leao, who often tries to do too much himself. At least two times Pulisic was pulled from games early and immediately — and I do mean immediately– team chemistry was lost (and the lead was lost also).
He should have even a few more goals because he breaks quickly and gets open, yet teammates with the ball have their heads down and don’t feed him.
He has worked and improved his game gradually one step at a time. For example, he used to not have a killer instinct when firing on goal close to the net. Recently he has. His next biggest challenge is to show up in BIG games. While he hasn’t played badly against great teams, he has not played greatly. If he does that he can move from being a good player to a great one.
Totally agree CP is a team player that others should emulate. Leao scored because CP fed him over and over again. When time for Leao to return the favor (CP wide open at the front of the box) Leao put his head down and forced a shot. To win the Scudetto, we need more team play and less individualism.
I agree with you Eugenio except for the great teams portion. I believe he is not able to move forward by himself with great teams.
He needs teammates to play off of and to feed him. If he has that, he seems to do really well against great teams.
A picture is worth a thousand words…
LeBron James of soccer!
#captainamerica
Pulisic is a very good player. One of his top strengths is his decision making. He’s always looking to create dangerous passes for his teammates. I think his decision making has developed from his favorite off field activity, speed chess.
As to his play in big games, his play against Madrid in Chelsea’s championship run a few years ago, got them through to the final. Too, he scored great goals against both Man City and Liverpool.
As to his heart, he scored the winning goal against Iran in the USA’s WC group play, knowing full well that he was going to have a violent collision with the keeper (after which he was immediately taken to the hospital).
As to his health, he’s constantly being fouled with hard leg-busting fouls. Porto fouled his 11 times in Chelsea’s quaterfinal to tie Messi for the most fouls taken in a Champion’s league game.