Christian Mate Pulisic ( ; [ 7 ] croatian : Pulišić, [ 8 ] pronounced [ krǐstijan mǎːte pǔliʃitɕ ] ; [ 9 ] [ 10 ] [ 11 ] hold September 18, 1998 ) is an american master soccer actor who plays as a winger and attacking midfielder for Premier League club Chelsea and the United States national team. [ 12 ] [ 13 ] [ 14 ] due to his high grade of play along with his nationality, he has been given the dub “ Captain America “ by fans and other players. [ 15 ] Pulisic began his professional career at german club Borussia Dortmund, where, after fast progress through the team ‘s young person academy, in which he featured in only 15 youth games, he was promoted to the senior team in 2016, at age 17. [ 16 ] He featured meagerly in his first temper at the club, but his involvement increased dramatically in the trace political campaign, where he was a pillar in the Dortmund team that won the 2016–17 DFB-Pokal. [ 17 ] In 2018, he finished second in the inaugural Kopa Trophy, given to the best player under age 21.
Reading: Christian Pulisic
In January 2019, Pulisic moved to Chelsea in a transportation worth $ 73 million ( £ 57.6 million ), making him the most expensive union american player of all time, and began playing for the baseball club in the 2019–20 season. [ 18 ] Pulisic has appeared and scored at every youth flush and made his elder team debut in March 2016 at historic period 17. He is the youngest musician always to captain the United States national team in the modern era. [ 19 ] He helped the U.S. to the final examination of the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup, and has won a U.S. Soccer Young Male Athlete of the Year prize, two U.S. Soccer Male Athlete of the class awards, and a UEFA Champions League winners medal .
early on life [edit ]
Pulisic was born in Hershey, Pennsylvania, [ 20 ] where he spent the majority of his childhood. His parents, Kelley and Mark Pulisic, both play collegiate soccer at George Mason University and his church father besides played professional indoor soccer for the Harrisburg Heat in the 1990s and late became a coach at both youth and professional levels. [ 21 ] Growing up, his soccer paragon was Luís Figo. [ 22 ] Pulisic lived in England for a year at the senesce of seven, playing for the young person team of Brackley Town. [ 4 ] When his father was general director of indoor cabaret Detroit Ignition in the mid-2000s, Pulisic lived in Michigan and played for Michigan Rush. While in Michigan, he attended Workman Elementary School. [ 23 ] After the syndicate returned to the Hershey area, Pulisic grew up playing for local anesthetic U.S. Soccer Development Academy club PA Classics and occasionally training with local anesthetic professional golf club Harrisburg City Islanders, nowadays known as Penn FC, during his adolescent years. In the summer of 2010, he went on a five-day trial at Chelsea ‘s Cobham base. [ 24 ]
Club career [edit ]
Borussia Dortmund [edit ]
In February 2015, Borussia Dortmund signed 16-year-old Pulisic and assigned him first to their U17 police squad and in summer 2015 to the U19. After scoring 10 and assisting 8 in just 15 games with the Dortmund youth teams, [ 25 ] Pulisic was called to join the first team over winter demote. [ 26 ]
2015–16 : Breakthrough season [edit ]
In January 2016, while with the first team in the winter break, Pulisic played the second gear half of two friendly matches, scoring one goal and assisting another. [ 27 ] On January 24, a day after making his introduction on the first team bench, Pulisic played 90 minutes in a friendly against Union Berlin, scoring a goal and assisting another. [ 28 ] He made his Bundesliga debut in a 2–0 winnings against Ingolstadt on January 30, 2016, coming on as a second-half stand-in for Adrián Ramos. [ 29 ] On February 18, Pulisic made his UEFA Europa League debut as a second-half substitute in a 2–0 victory against Porto. [ 30 ] Pulisic made his foremost Bundesliga start on February 21, against Bayer Leverkusen before finally being substituted for Marco Reus. He made his irregular Bundesliga start on April 10, against Schalke 04 in the Revierderby, playing 73 minutes before being replaced by İlkay Gündoğan. In response to Pulisic ‘s performance against Schalke, team coach Thomas Tuchel said, “ He ‘s a adolescent in his foremost year of professional football. His first two games in the starting football team were in Leverkusen and here today in Schalke – not the easiest of tasks. It shows our huge admiration that we see him as a fully time musician on our team. He was a valuable alternate against Werder Bremen and Liverpool. He has looked actually good recently which has been proved nowadays. It is completely normal that he could not have played with this pace and this intensity for over 90 minutes. ” [ 31 ] Pulisic scored his inaugural Bundesliga goal for Borussia Dortmund on April 17, opening the score in a 3–0 home win against Hamburg. It made him the youngest non-German and fourth-youngest player to score a goal in the Bundesliga, at 17 years and 212 days old. [ 32 ] With his goal against VfB Stuttgart on April 23, Pulisic broke another Bundesliga grade record by becoming the youngest actor to score two goals in the top-flight league. The game besides marked his first yellow wag in the Bundesliga, as a result of a challenge on Emiliano Insúa. [ 33 ]
2016–19 : DFB-Pokal win and passing [edit ]
In the 2016 International Champions Cup friendly pre-season tournament, Pulisic scored in arrest clock time against Manchester City to send the clubs into penalties. [ 34 ] During his first base competitive appearance in his second year with the club, Pulisic became Dortmund ‘s youngest player ever to play in the UEFA Champions League. [ 35 ] The succeed weekend he scored his first base finish of the temper and provided two assists in a 6–0 victory against Darmstadt 98, [ 36 ] one day before his 18th birthday. In a September Champions League group phase plot against Real Madrid, with Dortmund trailing 2–1, Pulisic came on as a second-half substitute and helped set up André Schürrle ‘s late finish, allowing Dortmund to earn a 2–2 draw. [ 37 ] In a substitute appearance on October 22, Pulisic assisted one goal and scored the equalizer against Ingolstadt 04, who were last place at the begin of the day, to salvage a draw, coming back from 3–1 down. [ 38 ] On January 23, 2017, Pulisic signed a fresh deal with Dortmund which would keep him at the clubhouse until 2020. [ 39 ] [ 40 ] On March 8, 2017, Pulisic scored his first UEFA Champions League goal in a 4–0 victory over Benfica in the beat of 16, making him Dortmund ‘s youngest ever scorer in the competition at the age of 18 years, 5 months, and 18 days. [ 41 ] Pulisic besides assisted one of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang ‘s goals in the winnings, advancing Dortmund to the quarter-finals. [ 42 ] On August 5, 2017, Pulisic scored the foremost finish in the DFL-Supercup against Bayern Munich. [ 43 ]
Chelsea [edit ]
On January 2, 2019, Pulisic signed with Premier League golf club Chelsea for an estimated £ 58 million transmit fee. The softwood besides saw him stay at Dortmund on loanword for the end of the 2018–19 season. [ 44 ] This transfer made Pulisic the most expensive american actor and Borussia Dortmund ‘s second most expensive sale of all time, behind Ousmane Dembélé. [ 45 ] Upon his arrival in the summer, he spoke of his desire to replicate the form shown by Eden Hazard and described the ahead as a soccer paragon. [ 46 ] [ 47 ]
2019–20 : debut season, wound and Premier League breakthrough [edit ]
On August 11, 2019, Pulisic made his Premier League debut for Chelsea in a 0–4 kill against Manchester United. [ 48 ] Pulisic scored his first gear goals for Chelsea on October 26, 2019, completing a “ perfect ” hat-trick in a 4–2 aside win against Burnley. The hat-trick was the first base of his career, and he became the moment american to achieve the feat in the Premier League after Clint Dempsey for Fulham in 2012, ampere well as the youngest hat-trick scorekeeper in Chelsea ‘s history at the age of 21 years and 38 days. [ 49 ] [ 50 ] He besides became the first Chelsea player to score a perfect hat trick since Didier Drogba in 2010. [ 51 ] Pulisic scored in his next two league outings, a 2–1 away victory against Watford [ 52 ] and a 2–0 home winnings over Crystal Palace. [ 53 ] On October 23, 2019 during Champions League 2019-20 matched against Ajax, Pulisic played as a ersatz and assisted Michy Batshuayi ‘s late goal 1–0 win. The Belgium striker thumped home plate companion substitute Pulisic ‘s low cross with equitable four minutes remaining at Johan Cruyff Arena to earn the Blues back to back away wins in the competition. [ 54 ] He scored his foremost Champions League goal for Chelsea in a 2–2 draw away to Valencia on November 27. [ 55 ] When the Premier League fixtures resumed after the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Pulisic had recovered from injury and came off the workbench to score the equalizer in Chelsea ‘s 2–1 win against Aston Villa on June 21, 2020. [ 56 ] In the follow match, Pulisic scored the inaugural goal in Chelsea ‘s 2–1 victory over Manchester City, a solution that eliminated the second-placed City from claim controversy and confirm Liverpool as Premier League champions. [ 57 ] On July 22, Pulisic scored a finish in a 3–5 frustration to Liverpool. [ 58 ] On August 1, he scored the orifice goal in the 2020 FA Cup Final against Arsenal after five minutes, becoming the first American player to score in the final of the contest, but was substituted early in the second half after sustaining a hamstring injury. Arsenal finally came from behind to win the match 2–1. [ 59 ] In August 2020, Pulisic was named to the eight-player shortlist for the inauguration Premier League Young Player of the Season award, [ 60 ] which was finally awarded to Liverpool ‘s Trent Alexander-Arnold. [ 61 ] Pulisic ended the season with 11 goals and 10 assists in all competitions. [ 62 ]
Read more: Manchester City F.C.
Read more: Manchester City F.C.
2020–21 : rejoinder from injury and Champions League winnings [edit ]
ahead of his moment season at Chelsea, Pulisic was given the number 10 shirt after Willian, who wore the number the previous temper, departed in the offseason to Arsenal. [ 63 ] He returned to training on September 9 following the hamstring injury he suffered in the FA Cup Final in August, [ 64 ] although Lampard kept him off the police squad for the season opener against Brighton after experiencing some discomfort former in the workweek. [ 65 ] Pulisic made his season debut on October 3, coming off the bench belated in a 4–0 gain over Crystal Palace. [ 66 ] He made his first Premier League start of the season on October 17, a 3–3 draw against Southampton. [ 67 ] On October 28, Pulisic came off the bench to score a 90th-minute goal in a 4–0 Champions League away win against Krasnodar. [ 68 ] With his 93rd-minute goal for Chelsea against rivals Leeds United on December 5, Pulisic became the fastest american to reach 10 goals in the Premier League. [ 69 ] On April 3, 2021, Pulisic scored the opening finish in a 2–5 home league kill to West Bromwich Albion. [ 70 ] A week former, Pulisic scored a double against Crystal Palace in a 4–1 victory at Selhurst Park. [ 71 ] On April 27, Pulisic scored Chelsea ‘s merely finish in a 1–1 away withdraw against real Madrid at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stéfano in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final bind, becoming the youngest Chelsea player and beginning american to score in the Champions League semi-finals. [ 72 ] In the return game at Stamford Bridge, Pulisic came on as a substitute and provided the aid for Mason Mount ‘s deep goal to make it 2–0 and procure passage to the final. [ 73 ] On May 29, Pulisic won his first Champions League after Chelsea won 1–0 against Manchester City in the final at the Estádio do Dragão in Porto, becoming the beginning american to play in a UEFA Champions League Final [ 74 ] and the irregular american to win it after Jovan Kirovski in 1997 with Borussia Dortmund. [ 75 ] [ 76 ]
International career [edit ]
Pulisic had represented the United States at the U-15 and U-17 levels. He captained the U-17 team at the 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup, where he scored a goal and an serve in three games. [ 77 ] During his two years with the team, Pulisic scored a sum of 20 goals in 34 games. Pulisic had been eligible to play internationally for Croatia but declined the opportunity. [ 78 ] [ 79 ] On March 27, 2016, Pulisic was called up to the elder team by head bus Jürgen Klinsmann ahead of a World Cup qualifying game against Guatemala. [ 80 ] Two days by and by, he made his debut in that match, a 4–0 win at the Mapfre Stadium in Columbus, Ohio, as an 81st-minute substitute for Graham Zusi. He therefore became the youngest american to play in a World Cup modifier. [ 81 ]
Pulisic taking a unblock kick against Trinidad and Tobago during the CONCACAF Gold Cup in June 2019 Pulisic was included in the senior squad for the Copa América Centenario, which was hosted by the United States. [ 82 ] A workweek late, he became the youngest player to score for the United States in the modern era, when he put home a late goal in a 4–0 friendly win against visiting side Bolivia. [ 83 ] On September 2, 2016, Pulisic recorded two goals and an aid in a World Cup qualifying catch in a 6–0 victory over Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, [ 84 ] thereby becoming the youngest person to score in a World Cup modifier for the United States and the youngest player to score a brace in american history. [ 85 ] In the comply match against Trinidad and Tobago, he broke another young person record by becoming the youngest american to start a World Cup qualifying match. [ 86 ] In the pursue class of qualification, on June 8, Pulisic scored both goals in a 2–0 victory over Trinidad and Tobago. In the stopping point two matches of qualification, Pulisic scored a goal in each : a 4–0 victory over Panama and a 1–2 defeat to Trinidad and Tobago. He finished the fifth round as the top scorekeeper with five goals. Despite his strong performances, the United States failed to qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. The loss to Trinidad and Tobago is considered the most demeaning performance in american soccer history. [ 87 ] On November 20, 2018, Pulisic became the youngest player to captain the United States national team in a friendly defeat to Italy. Pulisic was 20 years and 63 days old. [ 88 ] On June 6, 2021, Pulisic captained the United States national team to a 3–2 victory in the first-ever CONCACAF Nations League final against Mexico, scoring the winning finish by converting a penalty in the 114th minute. [ 89 ] This marked Pulisic ‘s foremost external trophy with the first team and the end of a season that saw him win silverware with club and country .
manner of bring [edit ]
Following his forwarding to the Dortmund first gear team, FourFourTwo writer Andy Mitten wrote that the Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel “ saw the likely – the speed, distinctness, potency, sublime fitness and mature decision-making that belied his age. ” [ 90 ] Tuchel called Pulisic “ the kind of guy who ‘s identical self-assured, shows his talent on the pitch, and does n’t show any nerves under coerce – which is a fantastic combination. ” [ 90 ] Pulisic ‘s Dortmund teammate Nuri Şahin said, “ He ‘s unafraid [ … ] He has therefore much focal ratio, but what I like most is his inaugural touch. When he gets the musket ball, his first touch opens up a huge quad for him flush if there ‘s no space. ” [ 90 ] Since the 2018–19 season, Pulisic was most much deployed on the wing for Dortmund, and this has continued at Chelsea. Because of his style of play, Pulisic is much subjected to fouls by opponents. [ 91 ] In July 2020, Chelsea coach Frank Lampard compared him positively to erstwhile Chelsea winger Eden Hazard, saying Pulisic “ has a more lineal attacking instinct. He has the endowment to pass through defenders and run at heart the box which is a capital trait in the modern game. ” Lampard added, “ There ‘s even more development to come. Christian is taking duty to change games. ” [ 92 ]
personal life [edit ]
Pulisic ‘s paternal grandfather, Mate Pulišić, was born in Croatia on the island of Olib. [ 93 ] Pulisic obtained Croatian citizenship after moving to Germany in order to avoid applying for a german solve visa, which is required to work in the country without a European Union pass. [ 79 ] Pulisic has a cousin, Will Pulisic, who plays for MLS club Austin FC. [ 94 ] The last name Pulisic is derived from the croatian city Pula and has confused some people of its proper pronunciation. Both the anglicise pronunciation ( IPA : ) and the master croatian pronunciation ( IPA : ) have been used by commentators, and Pulisic confirmed that either mannequin is acceptable. [ 95 ] Outside of soccer, Pulisic is a fan of the New York Jets, New York Rangers, and Philadelphia 76ers. [ 96 ]
career statistics [edit ]
club [edit ]
- As of match played December 1, 2021[97][98]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club
Season
League
National Cup[a]
League Cup[b]
Europe
Other
Total
Division
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Apps
Goals
Borussia Dortmund
2015–16
Bundesliga
9
2
0
0
—
3[c]
0
—
12
2
2016–17
Bundesliga
29
3
4
1
—
10[d]
1
—
43
5
2017–18
Bundesliga
32
4
1
0
—
8[e]
0
1[f]
1
42
5
2018–19
Bundesliga
20
4
3
2
—
7[d]
1
—
30
7
Total
90
13
8
3
—
28
2
1
1
127
19
Chelsea
2019–20
Premier League
25
9
2
1
2
0
4[d]
1
1[g]
0
34
11
2020–21
Premier League
27
4
6
0
0
0
10[d]
2
—
43
6
2021–22
Premier League
5
2
0
0
0
0
2[d]
0
1[g]
0
6
2
Total
55
15
8
1
2
0
16
3
2
0
83
19
Career total
145
28
16
4
2
0
44
5
3
1
210
38
International [edit ]
- As of match played November 16, 2021[98]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team
Year
Apps
Goals
United States
2016
11
3
2017
9
6
2018
3
0
2019
11
5
2020
0
0
2021
8
3
Total
42
17
- As of match played November 12, 2021. United States score listed first, score column indicates score after each Pulisic goal.[99]
Honors [edit ]
Borussia Dortmund
Chelsea
United States U17
United States
Individual