Christian Pulisic hype train leaves Madrid station
- by Paul Kennedy @pkedit, Sep 26, 2017
From an American perspective, Pulisic is a once-in-a-generation
player. In a major talent-producing European country like Spain, Germany or France, players like Pulisic come along two or three at a time.
But with Ousmane Dembele sold to
Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund in first place in the Bundesliga -- five wins and one tie, 14 goals in the last three games -- the spotlight has started to shine more closely on Pulisic.
Bundesliga "Top-Spieler"
1. Mark Uth, Hoffenheim, 2.30
2. Jean-Kevin Augustin, RB Leipzig 2.38
3.
Christian Pulisic, Borussia Dortmund 2.40
3. Maximilian Philipp, Borussia Dortmund 2.40
5. Santiago Ascacibar, VfB Stuttgart 2.50
5. Dennis Geiger,
Hoffenheim 2.50
5. Nuri Sahin, Borussia Dortmund 2.50
5. Yann Sommer, Bor. M'Gladbach 2.50
Note: Kicker average player ratings.
Pulisic isn't the
only player who has been playing well for Dortmund -- indeed, first-year players Maximilian Philipp and Andriy Yarmolenko might start ahead of him on the wings Tuesday against Real
Madrid in the UEFA Champions League -- but the Madrid media have decided to jump on the Pulisic hype train.
El Mundo called Pulisic "El Figo yanki" after former Portuguese great Luis Figo, who played for Real Madrid (and
Barcelona) and who was Pulisic's hero as a child. Don Balon referred
to Pulisic as "el nuevo Figo" for his style of play.
El Mundo noted that Pulisic, at the age of 19, already has the No. 10 on his back when he plays for the national team and
he is already the great American hope.
Without identifying any sources, Don Balon reported Real Madrid president Florentino Perez, after losing Dembele to Barcelona, has
his sights set on signing Pulisic, who would be, Don Balon was quick to remind its readers, the first American to play for Real Madrid.
Pulisic has already played against Real
Madrid. In only his second Champions League appearance last season, he came off the bench to help set up Dortmund's late goal in its 2-2 tie
at the Signal-Iduna-Park.
Pulisic, who has started five of six Bundesliga games and Dortmund's opening Champions League, does not seem to be concerned about whether he starts or
comes off the bench.
"We have a lot of good players," he told the Bundesliga Web site, "so we know that anyone
we put on the field is going to do a good job and that's what's happening at the moment. We feel really good right now. We're confident and we'll take it from there."
Borussia Dortmund's new guard:
28 Omer Toprak (Bayer Leverkusen)
27 Andriy Yarmolenko (Dynamo Kiev/UKR)
23
Maximilian Philipp (Freiburg)
23 Jeremy Toljan (Hoffenheim)
21 Mahmoud Dahoud (Borussia M'Gladbach)
18 Dan-Axel Zagadou (Paris SG/FRA)
Pulisić would do well to stay right where he is for a couple of seasons, at least. Hype based on future expectations is one thing. A solid record of achievement at a top club is something else again. Dortmund clearly believes in him and his path there is clear. At Madrid his progress could easily stall and his career would suffer. Borussia Dortmund might not be Real Madrid, or even Bayern Munich. But they are a VERY big club in one of the very best leagues in the world.
absolutely correct!
Amen. We see that sort of derailement often enough.
He'll surely be at Dortmund the rest of this season but after the world cup he may have some offers, if he plays well for Dortmund and the US (assuming we qualify of course). You can't forget salary when considering a potential move. I'm sure Real Madrid pays a lot more and this is Christian's career. He only has so many years of earning potential.
Agreed John. Hard to see how a 19 year old leaving a starting job at a champions league club that believes in and wants him can be improved on. The match time is invaluable. Plus Dortmund actually is committed to starting young players as part of its club values.
Considering that he just signed an extension with Dortmund through 2020 in January of this year, I will be surprised to see him go anywhere else before then. While Dortmund has Castro, Gotze, Sahin, Dahoud, Weigl, Kagawa (and Shurrle, Rode and Sancho) all listed as mids, Pulisic is still shining. He seems loyal to the club, the fans and teammates love him, and he continues to work hard and get better. He plays on a team that should challenge for the Bundesliga crown while playing in Champions League every year.
Wherever he plays (now and future), our family is rooting for his continued success - he's a pleasure to watch on the pitch, and a great representative for the U.S..
Keep it up Christian!
Boy, it's nice to even have such a conversation about a young American player!
Amen, Kent, To be talking about him is awesome. He seems level headed and I pray for no injuries in such a demanding sport. Hamstrings seem the most popular from so many games. Been enjoying the Atlanta team and now Almiron is out for awhile. Go USA!
Pulisic is a post WC 2018 big catch for whoever wants to pay Dortmund the big bucks...his potential today is around $40M.
This kid is special. Let him play. Let him be productive and when he is successful write about it but quit this rhetoric or you are going to JINX him. Play on CP.