In the past 18 months, there have been few players as brilliant as Christian Pulisic, whether that’s for AC Milan or not. More impressively, it has been during a negative time for the club.
There is the cliche about light at the end of the tunnel, but Pulisic disproves that, regularly being the light in the tunnel. Around him, for the majority of the time, he has been surrounded by players that have not matched his levels, excluding a few of course.
Despite this, his impact his rarely faltered, instead, the American has become more and more pivotal, taking the reins when needed, but never stopping others from shining, and that is a great definition of the player.
As Gazzetta dello Sport writes, the American ‘talks a little, but scores a lot’, and this is because actions are louder than words. In a team which is far from star-studded, he has forged himself into one, hitting numbers that are consistent and pivotal for the club.
Even in moments where others may talk, he has stayed true to himself, and stayed in the background, just focusing on his own role in the team, for example, when he had the penalty taken off him twice against Fiorentina earlier this season.
In the near future, he will extend his deal, an ‘evolved’ Pulisic from the one that first signed with the Diavolo 18 months ago, a huge sigh of relief, and another shining light in a season-long tunnel.
Pulisic is the only one who deserves the Milanisti badge. He plays with his heart, and it is quite evident from his games. Even on days he doesn’t really do well, yet you would see the passion in his plays.
He, Pavlovic and Rainderd are ok. And also Gimenez is pyré rossonero , but he needs more time
See this is what I don’t understand. The media been playing these games. I love me some Pulisic but Leao has been quietly carrying the team offensively for a month while Puli sorted himself out…nothing wrong with that btw because sometimes the reverse occurs. However, we get no articles on that for Leao, I’m sure if it was the other way around we’d see the ones where he hasn’t scored in a month or 300+ minutes etc or put another way they’d be highlighting Puli’s carrying the team over Leao. It’s the biasedness that bothers me. Why is it good for one but not the other? Prior to the Lecce game, Puli hasn’t scored or assisted since Feb 8, a whole month. Meanwhile Leao racked up 2 goals and 2 assists and not a peep.
PS I like both of them together on the pitch but I just hate the narratives that get painted for one over the other, specifically by the media. And this is why ppl get divided over.
Also they’re both almost on same goal contributions this season (Leao 19, Puli 21). 🤷♂️
Puli is a very skilled winger as is Leao, they should both get their props.
agreed. Pulisic is a great player and I believe he is playing close to his ceiling. With Leao tho it always feels like we’ve barely scratched the surface. We know he’s the best and that’s why we expect more.
This thinking is the problem. Leao is what he is. He’s not what you think he could be or should be. He is at his ceiling. He’s never going to be what people want him to be. He is what he is now, and that is a very dynamic offensive player who has the ability to take over games, but he is inconsistent and at times unserious. He’s never going to be someone who tracks back and runs hard in defense. SO you need to either accept him how he is or move on from him.
For me, I think he is worth it for what he create offensively for the team.
Virtually all 26 year old players are at their ceiling, that includes Leao as K mentions in his comment.
I think people get frustrated seeing Leao not give maximum effort, which seems to happen somewhat frequently. Puli hasn’t always been perfect but he never fails to give 100% effort–for example, often leading the statistic for most km run in a match, sprinting back to recover a ball that he lost rather than hang his head, etc.
“However, we get no articles on that for Leao, I’m sure if it was the other way around we’d see the ones where he hasn’t scored in a month or 300+ minutes etc or put another way they’d be highlighting Puli’s carrying the team over Leao. It’s the biasedness that bothers me. Why is it good for one but not the other? ”
Easy. Pulisic does more on the pitch that chase for goals & assists. Pulisic plays for the team. He runs. He fights. He defends. He gives his 100% every time. Can you honestly say the same things about Leao? No. You really can’t.
There’s more to football than goals & assists.
*than chase…
Two different players and it’s fine to be that way. Outcomes are the same. Pulisic cannot beat his man for pace, he does it with a bit of trickery and intelligence on the ball plus movements. Leao affects the game with his physical attributes, pace, skill and ability to take on players.. sometimes multiple at a time. It’s rare these days for players to beat players with pure pace. His acceleration is one of the best if not the best in the world rn. What he saves for in his tank is exploited this way. Hence he’ll never be the guy that runs or tracks back. It’s a waste of energy he can use for offense.. As Ancelotti said, why if he has Ronaldo in the team he wouldn’t have him track back.
In any case, both are good to have in the team.
Most of his accelerations go to waste though as his end product is awful. It takes 20 attempts to get the ball to a teammate whereas Pulisic’s accuracy and success ratio is way beyond that of Leao’s. But yeah, like you said, both are good to have in the team.
bb AGREE 100%
They are best when they are both on the field together. You can’t concentrate on Rafi and ignore Pulisic and visa versa. They need to work off each other. Chris has always been a good crosser of the ball, looking for Rafi and now Rafi is learning to look for Chris. Laeo is best when he gets off the ball sooner and looks for the assist rather than dribbling through 3 defenders. This Is a dynamic threat and if they grow together on the pitch, Milan’s future is bright. Off the pitch they should be spending time together solidifying the chemistry. They are both stars and can share the spotlight.
Exactly! I love what both brings to the team. They bring different things. And they both produce over the course of the season. There’s no way I could ever blame either of the two for failing to do what they’re supposed to do. What I’d like a proper midfield to help them out. I hate that the media has to pit them against each other or bias the narratives
Just want to add that Pulisics ‘down’ February was in part due to the arrival of Felix and the coachs stubbornness on trying to run things through Felix and away from what had been successful. Pulisic was seeing less of the ball during that time.
Plus Pulisic has been suffering from an injury (or multiples injuries) that has made him sit on the bench even 1-2 weeks ago. He hasn’t been even remotely close to 100% fitness.
The expectations are different. Leão is expected to be Scudetto Leão, a €100m league MVP who imposes his will on the game. We don’t have those expectations for Pulisic.
High expectations comes with high salaries.
I agree, I like both players, more so together. Leao takes the majority of the blame when things go wrong because he is the face of the club so it makes sense but it is a bit unfair. I know a lot of people are fed up with Leao but he can flip a game on its head at any moment and there aren’t many players in all of Europe that can do that let alone in Milan. If we build a solid midfield over the summer I see Leao having more counter attacking opportunities and only good things will come. Pulisic will do his thing but he benefits greatly from having Leao on the pitch. Leao holds to touch allowing Pulisic to cut into the half space and guess who passes the ball to him, Leao.
Agreed. Good insight about Leao holding to touch and creating space for Puli.
TBH, no one has been carrying the team over the last month because we have been eating those Ls.
He has a similar face to Casey Affleck
I think people get frustrated seeing Leao not give maximum effort, which seems to happen somewhat frequently. Puli hasn’t always been perfect but he never fails to give 100% effort–for example, often leading the statistic for most km run in a match, sprinting back to recover a ball that he lost rather than hang his head, etc.
Leao is a better player, Pulisic simply plays better more often . Who would you want on your team?
The one who plays for the team. No questions about it.