As fans know, the Chelsea takeover saga is officially in the rearview mirror, which means the team’s transformation can now begin. Thomas Tuchel has labeled this summer as a rebuilding period in the club’s history. There will presumably be a lot of incomings and outgoings as Todd Boehly has awarded the manager with £200 million to work with in his inaugural summer. Tuchel looks to have broken the Blues’ chop and change ways at manager, so now they can work with the German to build a squad capable of competing with Liverpool and Manchester City.
Part of that process requires some difficult decisions, which means letting some fan favorites and club legends go for the ultimate improvement of the squad. Chelsea is already undergoing a defensive transformation following the departures of Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger. Yet, it’s the attack that’s grabbed all headlines lately. The Blues are reportedly close to their first summer signing, Barcelona winger Ousmane Dembele, but this would likely require them to sell a winger, as well. One of the names on the chopping block is American sensation Christian Pulisic, who is reportedly on Jurgen Klopp’s wishlist when he searches for Sadio Mane replacements.
Chelsea winger Christian Pulisic is wanted by Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp
BILD’s Christian Falk, a reliable source for German transfer news, has confirmed the reports that Liverpool’s gaffer has shortlisted Pulisic as a possible Mane replacement for the near future. Mane has confirmed that he will leave Merseyside this summer after six years. While the Reds have plenty of strength in house—Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah—they reportedly want to bring another wide attacker in to fill the void left by Mane once he departs.
Still just 23 years old, Pulisic has his whole career ahead of him. His transfer to Chelsea hasn’t exactly worked out as planned, but he’s also played under two managers in three seasons. It’s worth noting too that neither manager was the one to bring the United States international to the club, that was Maurizio Sarri a few months before he joined Juventus. Pulisic has struggled for game time, especially over the last year. This lack of consistency and game time could’ve been blamed on injuries over the last two seasons, but he was healthy for most of this season, Tuchel just seemed to prefer to bring him off the bench in big games.
Pulisic has been touted as one of the four attackers most likely to leave west London this summer, alongside Romelu Lukaku, Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech. However, if the Blues have learned anything from their recent transfer luck, it’s that selling young players because they’ve struggled for consistency with limited minutes, they should stay patient. Pulisic’s prospective future teammate—if Klopp gets his way—is Exhibit A of this principle. Salah will go down as one of Chelsea’s worst decisions in hindsight as he’s blossomed into one of the best attacking players in world football since he made the switch to Liverpool. The No. 10s underlying statistics are good enough to warrant another shot in the upcoming season.
Tuchel and Co. must be absolutely sure that Pulisic is not the player for them before they even give selling him a second thought this summer. If the American is going to leave Stamford Bridge on a permanent basis, the Blues must not reinforce the Reds’ attack—under any circumstances. In all likelihood though, Pulisic will remain with Chelsea for at least another season as Boehly and the club’s other new American owners are desperate to show him off Stateside this preseason.
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