Off the Crossbar: Chelsea, Pulisic and the value of competition

Ever since Christian Pulisic broke into the first team at Borussia Dortmund in 2016 as a bright-eyed teenager, he has been hailed as American soccer’s savior. After thriving in the German Bundesliga for two full seasons as a 19- and 20-year-old, Pulisic moved to Chelsea over the summer for $73 million, making him by far the most expensive transfer of an American soccer player. But it hasn’t been easy for him in England as he has found it tough to cement a spot in Frank Lampard’s side. American soccer fans were left to rue if he would follow in the footsteps of countrymen Clint Dempsey, Landon Donovan, Jozy Altidore and others as a useful role player but not a star.

Both Lampard and Pulisic have faced many questions regarding his playing time, with the American calling his lack of appearances “very frustrating.” But with the return of Callum Hudson-Odoi from injury coupled with the impressive play of veterans Willian and Pedro, Pulisic knew that his goal of consistent playing time would get harder to meet. All he can do is "to improve [himself] in training and try to get back in the line-up," as Lampard told him. 

Lampard gave Pulisic a 25-minute cameo last Wednesday against Ajax, where the American teed up striker Michy Batshuayi for the winning goal. It was by far his best performance in a Chelsea jersey — and set the groundwork for him to make his start against Burnley — where Pulisic notched his first three competitive goals for Chelsea with a perfect hat-trick (one with his right, one with his left and one with his head).

It was a remarkable performance from the 21-year-old that came as a byproduct of hard weeks in training. Given the amount of competition Pulisic faced for the spot, he was obviously more motivated than he would have been had he been simply handed the spot at the beginning of the season.

Now, with all four of his wingers fit, Lampard is facing the best kind of coaching dilemma. With the pressure of knowing that one bad performance could result in them being dropped, the wingers/attackers have all raised their level of play, and the results are visible in Chelsea’s rising position in the table. Lampard has fostered a positive environment, getting the best out of the players and avoiding frustration and in-fighting.

It’s similar to the strategy that Manchester City has used over the past few seasons, stacking the team with an abundance of attacking talent in wide areas, with Raheem Sterling, Leroy Sané, Riyad Mahrez and Bernardo Silva competing for a couple of spots in the starting lineup. And while many thought that one, or even two, of them would leave this summer for more playing time elsewhere, the allure of winning trophies at City and still playing most weekends kept them at the Etihad. City’s wingers have taken the league by storm over the past two seasons, and Lampard will be hoping that similar success can keep his team together and spirited.