if you don't count his first season where he scored one goal in 10 appearances, which Fulham definitely counts it, because it was THE goal that saved them from relegation.... Then Dempsey averaged 9.33 goals a year for Fulham in six seasons. If Pulisic plays six seasons for Chelsea given how much easier goals should be for a main attacking threat on Chelsea than Fulham, I think anything absent significant assist totals NOT matching that pace would be a disappointment... I think Raheem Sterling is a good kind of track record for Pulisic. If he can match that kid's production, they moved for similar fees, etc. Chelsea would be happy if he produces like that.. That being said, obviously they are different players and it's going to be pretty interesting to see what this sudden uptick in form leads too. It's been very exciting to see him confident again. To be honest, outside of towards the end of last season with Dortmund, I haven't seen him been this consistently exciting since probably when Tuchel was coaching Dortmund.
not to be corny but he is just like Hershey Pa. just a great all around place where character matters.
It is known throughout the Empire as the "Hershey kiss" due to its similarity to the Scottish kiss, but using a ball instead some poor sod's knob.
But you can’t argue that he’s looking for the shot vs the pass more now than in the past. He needs to be shooting when there’s BARELY a shot there. If you shoot, anything can happen and he’s learning that.
He was also looking for the shot more than the pass, back when he was playing on the left under Tuchel. Sadly, that didn't happen many times. One of his best games, he came in for Reus on the left and scored one and assisted another against the Aspirins.
my point isn´t really about who is or isnt good enough or who deserves or doesnt deserve a chance... I´m talking about the effect of TRUE SUCCESS not just a sniff of the good sh*t...and what that can do to a player´s performance independent of what they bring to the table i.e. talent, ability etc <i think it is part of the reason that players in MLS RARELY IF EVER ever make "the leap"....a great player in MLS is just an MLS player in the global soccer landscape....spinning their wheels and likely being paid penuts compared to their euro counterparts and unlikely to really feel a huge surge of confidence that could impact their performance significantly as would be the case in a top euro league like the EPL. just knowing there are several levels above where you are at professionally has to make it hard to be ulitmately confident..as pro atheltes need to be. in a long-winded way I´m saying that underpaying players domestically/the realtive obsucrity in which they exist/etc has a not zero effect on actual performance. in other words, who a players is and how they perform is not independent of the broader context in which they play. pulisic´s recent experience is the opposite of what <i´m talking about.......he´s killing it at the pinnacle of the sport and it is like his game has been put on warp speed or something. i reckon part of it is success breeding success.....and not merely a static player with constantly similar performances regardless of context.
Or it could just be a purple patch caused by a coach who knows how to put him in a position to do what he does best with a bit of extra encouragement to shoot when in sight of goal. Tuchel was that kind of coach for him. Maybe as simple as, "Chris you do you, now go have some fun lad."
im generalizing beyond just CP´s situation.... we see it all the time that performance dips when a transfer to a bigger club falls through, why wouldn´t the reverse be true?
Again, though, we have plenty of real-life evidence. Zelalem, Kirovski, Spector, Cooper, Rossi, JOB, Dest, Danny K. etc. etc. etc. who started out at "fancy" or "storied" academies/big teams while still young. Some have it, some get injured, some don't cut the mustard. Would, I dunno, Reyna have been a different player if he'd picked Barca over UVa? Mebbe. Would LD have been different if he'd done a Bund academy over US academy? Mebbe. But it is still no magic elixir. Some of our better players came up through humble origins. Some of our most lauded youth prospects in "big" teams faded as they aged. Julian Green to the bat phone... It's fun to make fantasy arguments, but there's actual data out there and I'd suggest it does not overly strongly support your conjecture. Many good MLS players have tried other, sometime more competitive leagues. Some do great, others aren't good enough. It's how life works. (edit) I will agree that if we had more players in better academies more would work out better, but that's just a level-of-education issue. But many still would not make it at a higher level.
In case anyone was curious about his cousin, a former youth keeper for Dortmund, https://goduke.com/sports/mens-soccer/roster/will-pulisic/1316
Ha, posted the Watford clip first. NBCSports' Youtube channel has some pretty good game clips for those who haven't looked. 14mins worth:
Interesting to see how play for these youth elite players can be like a Rollercoaster. Sancho was just benched in the first half of dortmund's 4-0 loss against Bayern, and Favre said Sancho "wasn't good enough." I still think Pulisic got the short end of the straw last season at dortmund as they could have really used him more but didn't. Either way, these players are still adapting and expecting a 21 year old in Pulisic or a 19 year old in Sancho to always perform at an elite level is a lot to ask of them. https://www.google.com/amp/s/syndic...itution-he-was-not-good-enough-today.amp.html
46-64 is a long period. I think people group in more ten year clumps. Movies, TV shows, music and other fad and stuff change too fast for people born almost twenty year apart to be the same generation. 18-19 years apart is actually old enough for one to be a parent and another their kid.
^THIS. It's what I always say. George W. Bush's life is far different than my uncle's due to the 18 year difference among others.
yes if you see the slow mo of the header yesterday you can see how much he elevates ... at his size being able to dunk is good indication of the fast twitch fiber .... helps explain why he is so darn quick and explosive ...
It's pretty amazing how often this has to be pointed out. Anyone who's been watching football for a long time will be able to reel off a list of players who looked like world beaters when they were kids and then disappeared from view... as well as another list of guys who looked ordinary, (sometimes quite poor), who turned out to be excellent players. By the time people get into their 20's you should have a good idea what they're going to be like but, then again, it also depends on the individual because young men can get their heads turned.