It’s good to be Christian Pulisic in 2019! The year began with his transfer from Borussia Dortmund to Chelsea FC (taking effect in the summer) for £58 million; making him the most expensive American footballer ever. In July he developed rapidly with the USMNT during the Gold Cup tournament.
Life at Chelsea got off to a rough start, but it wasn’t long until he became a first team regular, produced a hat trick, and racked up the goals and assists. The 21-year-old is proving the early doubters wrong. He’s drawing high praise from all across the globe, including an Oscar-winning actor/owner of a MLS expansion franchise.
Thursday saw the winger claim U.S. Soccer’s Best Male Athlete award for 2019, and in the process he became the youngest to win the award twice. You can believe he’ll claim a few more of these plaudits in the future.
For country, he scored five goals and registered three assists, helping the Stars and Stripes reach the final of the Gold Cup, where they fell to arch-rival Mexico 1-0 at Soldier Field on July 7. Pulisic was named to the tournament’s Best XI.
For club, Pulisic has scored six goals and five assists thus far in 20 appearances for Chelsea. He is well on his way to registering new single season career highs.
Up next for Pulisic and Chelsea is a home clash on Saturday against AFC Bournemouth.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
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