Christian Pulisic: The American Talisman Leading Milan to Glory
Christian Pulisic was 17 years old when he made his professional debut for Borussia Dortmund. He was 20 when he became the most expensive American soccer player of all time, joining Chelsea for an estimated £58 million. He was 24 when he made his World Cup debut, earning two Man of the Match awards and leading the USMNT to the Round of 16. And at 26 years of age, he has won his first-ever trophy in Italian football.
Pulisic was born in Hershey, Pennsylvania and was raised by Kelley and Mark, both of whom played collegiate soccer at George Mason University. The son of a Croatian immigrant, Mark initially burst onto the New York soccer scene at the youth level and earned a scholarship to George Mason, where he scored 35 goals and 73 appearances, before eventually joining indoor soccer team Harrisburg Heat.
Mark spent his playing days during the ‘Wild West’ of US Soccer, the decade in between the decline of the North American Soccer League and the advent of Major League Soccer. “You’d play in a team for a year or two, and then the league or club would fold,” says ex USMNT international Janusz Michallik of the time period.
“It was all over the place…you didn’t know where the next check was coming from, or if it was coming at all. In those days, if you got a check from your team, you’d go straight to the bank and cash it…if you waited a few days, you might come up empty-handed. With the exception of MISL, there wasn’t a proper soccer league like MLS or NASL. You were bouncing around from one league to another. I played in a lot more leagues than I should’ve.”
Whilst Mark never quite managed to enjoy a sustainable soccer career, he made sure that his son got the luxury that was never afforded to him. Christian bounced around from England to Michigan before eventually returning to Pennsylvania and playing for PA Classics. His impressive displays earned the attention of Borussia Dortmund, who brought him to the club and quickly promoted him to the senior team in January 2016.
Pulisic was able to stake a claim for himself as one of the finest youngsters in Germany as well as a key figure for the US Men’s National Team, eventually prompting interest from a number of bigger clubs. It was Chelsea who won the race for him, with Pulisic playing regularly in England’s top-flight and becoming the first American to win the UEFA Champions League. However, regular playing time eluded him, and after four seasons in London, he elected to head to Italy and join AC Milan in the summer of 2023.
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It hasn’t taken long for Pulisic to justify the €22 million price tag and emerge as one of the first names on the team sheet. Wearing the #11 shirt previously used by Zlatan Ibrahimović, Pulisic excelled in Milan with 15 goals and 10 assists in all competitions, and he was even included on the three-man shortlist for Serie A Midfielder of the Season alongside Hakan Çalhanoğlu and Teun Koopmeiners and voted into the 2023/24 Serie A Team of the Season.
So far, it’s been more of the same for Pulisic. He’s reached double figures in goals for the third time in his career, having previously scored 11 with Chelsea in 2019/20, and so far, he’s racked up 10 goals and 6 assists in 22 appearances. Whether playing as an attacking midfielder or a winger on the right or left flank, Pulisic has delivered and emerged as a consistent source of creativity for the Rossoneri.
Pulisic kicked off 2025 just as he meant to continue it, scoring the equalizer from the penalty spot against Juventus in the 71st minute, whilst an own goal from Federico Gatti shortly after would see Milan prevail 2-1 and book their ticket for the Supercoppa Italiana Final. Inter found themselves ahead by two goals after Lautaro Martínez and Mehdi Taremi scored on either side of halftime, but Milan refused to back down and eventually pulled one back in the 52nd minute via Theo Hernández.
Hernández would set up Pulisic’s equalizer in the 80th minute, with Pulisic displaying brilliant goal-scoring instinct by making an intelligent run from the back edge of the box to the penalty spot and capping it off with an exquisite first touch and finish. With just seconds left before the final whistle, Pulisic teed up Rafael Leão with a superb line-splitting pass, and Leão obliged by finding Tammy Abraham with the winning goal in the final in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Despite not being fully fit due to a niggling ankle injury that has persisted since December, Pulisic was able to leave it all on the pitch and emerge as a key performer for Milan. He ran 12.29 km against Juventus, and in the final, he ran 12.146 km, covering the most distance in the entire match. And thanks to his goal-scoring heroics in the Middle East, he became the first American player to hit double figures in one of Europe’s top five leagues in back-to-back seasons since Clint Dempsey did it over a decade ago.
Since the start of the 2022/23 season, Pulisic has plied his trade under six different club managers including Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter, Frank Lampard, Stefano Pioli and Paulo Fonseca. Today, though, he has the chance to finally find some stability and grow into a protagonist role under new Milan coach Sérgio Conceição, and he’s already made a stellar first impression.
By: Zach Lowy / @ZachLowy
Featured Image: @GabFoligno / Icon Sportswire