Update on Christian Pulisic’s Chelsea future as window closes

There are just two days left in the summer transfer period, and Chelsea still has a lot of business it needs to complete before the window slams shut. The Blues recently got a deal for Leicester City defender Wesley Fofana over the line, so now their focus can turn to attacking reinforcements. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Anthony Gordon and Wilfried Zaha are just three of the names being linked with the west Londoners in the last couple of days. It’s not all about incomings though.

Chelsea has prioritized transforming the squad into one of manager Thomas Tuchel’s liking this summer. The Blues have sent expensive assets away in order to please the German, especially in attack. Players like Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner will no longer wear the badge, with Callum Hudson-Odoi and Hakim Ziyech expected to follow in their footsteps before the window closes. Therefore, Tuchel needs all of the help he can get from those remaining with the squad. His former colleague at Dortmund, Christian Pulisic, is one of those individuals.

Christian Pulisic’s Chelsea future has been revealed amidst reports

Pulisic has been linked with several moves away throughout the last few months, most notably to Manchester United and Newcastle. Two of the Premier League’s heaviest spenders so far have enquired about the availability of the American, but they’ve been met with the cold shoulder in recent weeks. It now seems as if the 23-year-old will stay in SW6 beyond this summer.

While many—specifically in the American media—will look at this as a negative development in the young winger’s career, it presents Pulisic with an opportunity. Together with new owner Todd Boehly, Tuchel has spent the summer months clearing out the squad, leaving only those he believes fit into his plans. Even though Pulisic has yet to convince his manager that he’s deserving of a starting spot in the current team, it’s hard to imagine him not getting more chances to prove himself now with less competition in the squad’s ranks.

The Blues are likely going to be without Everton’s Gordon on September 1, if reports are to be believed. That would leave Raheem Sterling and Pulisic as the only natural left wingers in the team until January at the earliest, and during a 50 to 60-game season, there’s no way the U.S. star won’t get a consistent run in the first team at some point. This is especially true if Sterling continues to play as a pseudo-center forward, which he has done a couple of times already.

Pulisic, unlike individuals like Ethan Ampadu and Kepa Arrizabalaga, doesn’t have to worry about his place on a World Cup roster. The Hershey, Pennsylvania native is the first name on Gregg Berhalter’s teamsheet for the USMNT—plain and simple. Therefore, this season presents him with a huge opportunity to get more minutes under his belt and continue to develop as a player under Tuchel’s guidance.

Pulisic has two years remaining on his current deal with Chelsea. It’s time for him to finally take it up a notch at Stamford Bridge, and he’s been given the vote of confidence from the club’s hierarchy. Hudson-Odoi is expected to finalize a season-long loan to Bayer Leverkusen in the coming days. There is now a clear pathway to first team minutes for Pulisic. The ball is in the American’s court now, the 2022/23 campaign is now crucial to his future with the club.

What do you make of the reports around Pulisic? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter!