MAY 27, 2017
Comes on as a
half-time sub in the
German Cup Final
against Eintracht
Frankfurt and wins
the penalty that
seals a 2-1 victory.
NOV 20, 2018
Is his country’s
youngest-ever
captain, at 20 years
and 63 days,
in a friendly
against Italy.JAN 2, 2019
Signs for Premier
League side Chelsea
in a deal that will see
him remain at
Dortmund for the
remainder of the
2018-19 season.means Pulisic won’t make his Premier
League debut until next term, and it feels
like a moment for which he has been
waiting all his life.
At the age of seven he spent 12
months with his family in Oxfordshire
while his mother concentrated on her
teaching-exchange business and his
father studied for his UEFA A coaching
badge. A big fan of Manchester United
and England striker Wayne Rooney, the
youngster visited a number of England’s
top grounds – among them Anfield, Old
Trafford and White Hart Lane – and
played in the junior ranks of Brackley
Town, a club in the neighbouring county
of Northamptonshire.
On returning to the States he had a
short spell with Michigan Rush – while
his dad coached Michigan Ignition – and
then joined US Soccer Development
Academy club PA Classics. Capped bythe USA under-15s when he was 13,
he scored 20 in 34 games for the
under-17s and by the spring of 2016 –
aged 17-and-a-half – he made his full
international debut. A couple of months
later he became the country’s youngest-
ever goalscorer, netting in a friendly
victory over Bolivia in Kansas City.
“This player’s potential is limitless,”
declared US boss Jurgen Klinsmann. “I’ve
always said you have to write your own
story and he’s doing it right now. I think
it’s rare in America for a player to be so
developed at such an early age.”
Clearly someone with a lot of faith in
the youngster, on the eve of the Bolivia
game he even allowed Pulisic to fly back
to Pennsylvania for his high-school prom.
Klinsmann’s one-time assistant, the
ex-Austria playmaker Andreas Herzog
also is a fan, declaring: “Amazingly for
one so young he is almost the complete
player. He’s technically very strong, is
exceptional when dribbling in one-on-
one duels, gets stuck in with a lot of
dynamism and is sensationally quick.
“He has a flair for quick thinking, for
assessing a situation and coming up with
the solution.”
Steve Klein, director of coaching at PA
Classics, says Christian’s success boils
down to his talent, his mentality and the
support system around him.
“I don’t think you can teach a lot of thestuff he has,” he told NBC Sports. “You
definitely knew at an early age that he
was going to be a very good player. It was
just his feet. He had a sense on how to
play through balls.
“For him to go over [to Dortmund] at a
young age and fight with grown men, he
had to have a strong character. That’s
where his parents have done such a good
job. Not going crazy when they’ve seen
they have a very talented player.
“There are a lot of soccer people who
have kids and go nuts because they
dream of what their kid is going to do
and ruin them.”
Pennsylvania is known as a breeding
ground for some top American Football
quarter-backs, such as Joe Montana, Joe
Namath and Dan Marino. Now it seem
soccer wizardry grows there too.Pittsburgh Riverhounds.
Growing up in such a sports-orientated
environment, it was no surprise that
Pulisic came to prominence so quickly.
In late 2013 he starred for the USA
under-17 side against Brazil at the Nike
International Friendlies series and was
voted the tournament’s Most Valuable
Player – at just 15. For those with their
finger on the pulse of US soccer, an
ascendant Pulisic was just what they
expected; a case of class will out.
“I first saw him when he was probably
11 or 12 in Washington DC,” USA
midfielder turned national under-20
coach Tab Ramos told Sports Illustrated
magazine. “He was playing for PA Classics
against DC United in an under-14
age-group match. I was walking by and I
saw someone who was so little on the
field. He completely looked like
someone’s little brother who had
wandered out onto the field. I was waiting
for someone to pull him off. Then I
realised he was running the show.
“He clearly was younger, smaller and
did not look as though he belonged.
That is, until he was around the ball.
After watching the game for five minutes,
you realised that everybody was playing
through him. The pace of the game was
completely dictated by him.”
Loaned back to Dortmund for the
remainder of this season by Chelsea
Christian Pulisic
National service...in a
friendly at Wembley
in NovemberNext season...he joins
Chelsea this summer“I’ve always said you have to write your
own story and he’s doing it right now”
Former USA national coach Jurgen Klinsmann