Christian Pulisic decided to leave Chelsea to start a new challenge at AC Milan this summer hoping to relaunch himself from a marginal role to a starring one. That is something which sounds very familiar.
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In fact, La Gazzetta dello Sport write how Pulisic and Olivier Giroud have reunited again under similar circumstance (the same can be said for Fikayo Tomori and Ruben Loftus-Cheek too) and they are both blossoming.
They get along on and off the pitch and it is perhaps not a surprise that they have combined for five of the six goals that the Rossoneri have scored so far this season, with Pulisic on two and Giroud on three.
It was no coincidence that Milan’s first goal of the season came from the Frenchman, who showed his killer instinct in front of goal after a pass from Tijjani Reijnders who had been spotted by Pulisic.
Giroud then returned the favour with a one-two for Pulisic’s long shot, which sealed on the three points to begin the season and got the USA international off the mark in Italy.
Against Torino, Pulisic got the first goal by doing something he did a lot at Chelsea, starting from a position in the spaces created by the striker and then taking up a central area to pounce on any delivery that might arrive.
It is a snapshot that goes back a couple of seasons, to the days of Stamford Bridge, in the 2019-20 FA Cup final between Chelsea and Arsenal. It was opened by a goal from Pulisic served up by a back heel by Giroud in the area.
In London, the two played together from 2019 to 2021 and shared the pitch in 32 games (1,363 total minutes). The balance of those matches shows eight goals by the Frenchman and three by the American (data that rise to 15 and 9 without considering the substitutions for one or the other during the match).
Added to this are two assists from Christian for Olivier and one vice versa. Thee are not exactly continuous opportunities and a fierce combination, which led the Blues to victory in the Champions League in 2021. Pleasant frames shared in May by Giroud, who in view of a possible reunion with his former teammate had spoken thus in an interview with Cbs Sport: “Do you remember together? He is a very talented player, a cheerful and always smiling boy. We laughed a lot with him, Our understanding on the pitch was excellent. A bit like with Eden Hazard, even though I played less with Christian. We knew how to find each other.” A suggestion accepted by the club and by Stefano Pioli.
