Graham Potter’s Chelsea: Where should Christian Pulisic play?

This is considering that many Chelsea forwards, especially strikers, struggle to get big chances. Pulisic received 12 big chances in his first season at the club. He received eight in his second season and 11 in his third season. In fact, last season, Pulisic received more big chances than any other Chelsea forward bar Kai Havertz, despite not playing up to 1300 minutes.

The USA captain took his shots from an average of 12.9 yards last season, with only Havertz taking shots on average from a closer distance (12.2 yards) amongst forwards at the club. This ability to get on the end of clear-cut chances, especially in games where Chelsea is struggling to get any breakthrough, means that Pulisic may well be deployed as a second striker in a two-striker formation.

Potter may decide to sometimes (or all the time) play a 3-4-1-2 or a 4-1-2-1-2 (4-Diamond-2/4-D-2). Pulisic may even play as one of the two strikers in a 3-5-2, a formation that Tuchel has used on several occasions. This may be the best way to optimize the winger’s skillset. He could read the game and ghost behind the back line at key moments, rather than being in a position to try and dribble.

Should Pulisic be deployed as a second striker in a front two. It is not necessarily a position he has played in often, but it would be a role he could be brilliant in, especially considering all the things he’s good at.