US coach: Lampard will get best from Pulisic
American is beginning to show signs he can flourish in the English game, writes Matt Law
It is not easy to scratch under the surface of Christian Pulisic. Those who have worked closely with him for years admit he is yet to really open up in public, while others who are trying to get to know him are largely left to guess what he might be feeling.
The guessing game has gone into overdrive since Pulisic arrived at Chelsea this summer and explained to reporters looking for clues to his personality that they would have to make up their own minds about what his tattoos meant, because he did not want to tell them.
It has been similarly hard to read how the forward has been feeling about his start to life at Stamford
Bridge, following his £58million move from Borussia Dortmund.
To his credit, Pulisic has not ducked questions over his tough introduction to English football. But, other than confirming he wants to start more games, the American has not given much away in terms of how he has been dealing with the challenge of being Chelsea’s only big-money arrival during the Fifa transfer ban, and a summer in which Eden Hazard left for Real Madrid.
Pulisic cut a frustrated figure during his last Chelsea start, against Grimsby Town in the Carabao Cup, when he struggled to make the sort of impact Frank Lampard, the head coach, would have expected.
But Pulisic, 21, has offered evidence that he is starting to settle at Chelsea, following a series of cameo performances from the bench, the most impressive of which came this week, when he helped to inspire a Champions League victory over Ajax by setting up Michy Batshuayi to score the winner.
The 24-minute display will have delighted Gregg Berhalter, the United States coach, who was in the Johan
Cruyff Arena to support his star player and who, earlier, had offered an insight into Pulisic’s personality.
“Christian’s intense, and some people mistake him being quiet for him being shy,” Berhalter said. “But he has this intensity that you like to see. When he’s on the field, there is this sharpness and intensity that, as a manager, you can appreciate and really like.” Berhalter’s assessment, a few hours before kick-off in Amsterdam, proved prophetic, as he added: “You will see that determination and intensity, that will come. It’s just adapting.” Chelsea had not been an environment in which players could be sure of being given time to acclimatise – just ask Mohamed Salah and Kevin De Bruyne – but Berhalter is confident the culture has changed under Lampard.
“This is a different model,” Berhalter said. “I had the pleasure of visiting Chelsea when Jose Mourinho was there and it was amazing just to see the squad, every player one to 28 was a full international. Now it’s younger talent and, in my opinion, it’s a more nurturing environment.
“Let’s not forget that he’s not the only player in the world who has had a challenge adapting to a move. Look at Antoine Griezmann in Barcelona, Eden Hazard in Real Madrid. The list goes on. Because he was the only transfer this year, a lot of attention is placed on him.”
That attention has manifested itself in calls for Pulisic to be rewarded for his Ajax cameo with a start against Burnley tomorrow. But Berhalter believes all the outside noise must be ignored and he trusts Lampard to act in the best interests of the player.
“The outside stuff is not real,” Berhalter said. “What’s real is this kid is in the Premier League, trying to make his name. I have a lot of confidence in Frank that he’s doing the things to get Christian to where he needs to be.”