Chelsea forward Christian Pulisic has spoken out about his squad role in the West London club in the wake of reported interest from Liverpool.
The American has been with the Blues since June 2019 after signing initially in January 2019 for £58 million and remaining at the Westfalenstadion on loan for the rest of the 2018/19 season.
The young forward was already a hugely successful international player with the USMNT and was already wearing the armband for the team on occasion. His move to Chelsea, however, has not turned out the way many envisioned.
While Pulisic has the talent and versatility to succeed at Stamford Bridge, strong competition for places have kept him a little under the radar. The 23-year-old has the likes of Hakim Ziyech, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Timo Werner as his competitors for roles in the Chelsea attack.
Injuries have also contributed to his reduced participation in club football. Prone to injury, Pulisic would spend months on the sidelines recovering from injuries which he suffered anew or relapsed from.
In his three seasons at Stamford Bridge, the USMNT captain has only crossed 40 appearances in a season just once and has never played up to 30 Premier League games. Still, Chelsea fans appreciate his efforts and his talents are still attracting suitors, one of which is Liverpool.
Pulisic, whose contract at Chelsea expires in 2024 and is currently on international duty with his national team, spoke to the media about his time at the club since 2019.
“As far as right now, I’m obviously just focused on what I’m doing here,” he said. “And I’m super excited to be here. And yeah, that’s it.
“Of course, I want to get more playing time. I want to be on the field as much as I can and be the sharpest I can be and fit as well.
“I think I still got a lot of games, but it’s always something that I’m working at and trying to be regular at club level as well to put myself in the best position to be fit when I come here with the national team.”
Meanwhile, Pulisic’s national teammate, Gabriel Slonina, will snub the opportunity to pair up with him at Chelsea in favour of a move to Real Madrid.
The 18-year-old goalkeeper has been in excellent form for MLS club Chicago Fire and has had to deal with loads of interest from Europe all season.
Chelsea and Madrid were in the lead for his signature but his agent Jaime Garcia has told the media of the player’s decision because, “you just don’t say no to Madrid”.
“It should be an honour for Chicago, and the MLS, to have Real Madrid take notice in one of their players,” Garcia told the MLS official website. “We are hoping Chicago can find an agreement with Real Madrid to realise Gabriel’s dream of playing for this club.
“With respect to other clubs and other offers [which] we’ve received many, and at the moment we are gracious to those clubs but you cannot say no to Real Madrid.”
