Seemingly perpetual rumours surrounding Christian Pulisic’s future have finally come to a close today as Chelsea announce they have agreed to sign him from Borussia Dortmund for £58million. According to the Sun, the transfer was previously reported to be agreed at £45 million after Arsenal had a £35 million bid turned down. However today it has been confirmed that the move has been agreed by both clubs for €64 million (£58 million) with him returning to Dortmund on loan for the remainder of the season.
There is no doubt Chelsea had to fight off several clubs from around Europe as the wide attacker has impressed not only at club level but at the international stage. He made his Bundesliga debut aged 17 in January 2016 and merely two months later earned his first USA cap. Fast forward two years and he has now made over 80 appearances for Dortmund and scored nine in 23 for the USA.
It seemed it was just a matter of time for Pulisic as Michael Zorc, the Dortmund director, explained: “it was always Christian’s dream to play in the Premier League”. Dortmund are as famous for producing world-class talent as Chelsea are in ruining it and under Zorc the German club have made incredible financial returns from youngsters in recent years including Ousmane Dembele.
Yet Pulisic has had a mixed season so far despite Dortmund having a blinder as they make the most of Bayern Munich’s troubled first half of the season. The American has featured 11 times under Lucien Favre only scoring a single goal. Yet, he now has a chance to not only repay Dortmund with a title but also to prove himself to hopeful and excited Chelsea fans for the 2019/2020 season.
Interestingly this signing joins a growing list of transfers spoiled by social media after Eddie Johnson, the former USA striker, posted an image on Instagram of Pulisic stating that he had already agreed to sign for Chelsea on New Years Eve. Pulisic is now a part of a unique catalogue of transfers that have been meddled with via social media platforms. Most recently, Cristiano Ronaldo’s lucrative move to Juventus was revealed on Weibo, the Chinese alternative to Facebook.
Some Chelsea fans will be disappointed they will not be able to see Pulisic in a Chelsea shirt until later this year after Chelsea have fallen behind Liverpool, Tottenham and Manchester City in the title race. They may be particularly pessimistic due to a similar transfer back in the January transfer window of 2012.
This window saw De Bruyne join Chelsea in identical circumstances as he returned on loan back to Genk for the remainder of the season. As most of us remember, De Bruyne (like most Chelsea players) was insufficiently nurtured and departed to Wolfsburg only to return for Manchester City and be instrumental in their title-winning season last year.
While Chelsea fans hope the De Bruyne saga does not come to fruition again at Stamford Bridge with Pulisic, they can at least remain confident in his current ability. Unlike De Bruyne who was proven in the Belgian league, Pulisic is proven not only on the international stage but in the Bundesliga.
