It has been a superb end to the season for Chelsea’s ‘Captain America’, Christian Pulisic, with the American performing arguably as well as he has ever done, on the biggest stage in world football, the Premier League. 

His blistering display against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City, where he single handedly destroyed the Citizens' defence on several occasions, made many people in and around the league take note. Pulisic showed he was not only here to take part, but he was here to take over. 

There was however frustration for the young-winger before football resumed, as he would’ve made his Chelsea return allot earlier, had it not been for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Homecoming

With the extended break, Pulisic took the opportunity to cross the Atlantic Ocean and do some personal training in Florida - being close to family of paramount importance at the time. 

On the frustration of not being able to return sooner, he said: “I was finally healthy, and just put in the work and I wanted to be on that field in that first game back.

“I wanted to be just more ready than everyone else, and that was really my mindset going into it.”

The frustration displayed, soon turned into confidence. Following an introduction as a substitute away to Aston Villa on their Premier League return, Pulisic turned in Cesar Azpilicueta's cross, to level the scores at one-all. 

Earning respect

This, in turn with his hard work on the training pitch, has quite rightfully earned him the respect of his teammates in SW6.

Pulisic claimed that he can sit in the dressing room feeling he deserves to be there now, as despite his price-tag when moving from Borussia Dortmund, it wasn’t enough to earn him respect amongst his new compatriots. 

He continued: “First game back I got a goal, and my confidence was just going up from there.

“Confidence is just a huge thing for me. Having confidence from your coach, from your teammates, from everyone around you, it does help.

“I’m definitely feeling that right now, and I think that’s part of why I’ve seen a bit of success here recently.”

The 21- year old added: “Kind of just proving you can play a little bit is a big thing. 

“Not everybody’s going to be your best friend right away, and that’s OK. 

“But I really felt like once I was able to show myself on the field and show that I could play, that’s when guys really started to say, like, ‘OK this kid’s good, he can hang with us, we’re going to treat him with a little bit more respect.’ Which is crazy to say, but it’s true in a lot of professional environments.”

For club and country

With his club football going well, there is no doubt there's a desire that his club form be transferred into performances for his country, the United States.

Pulisic states he is very keen to take on a leadership role ahead of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, helping to ensure his side qualify for the prestigious tournament. 

He continued: “I definitely want to take on more of a leadership role. 

“I’ve done it now, the qualifying process, obviously not so successfully last time.

“But nothing’s stopping us this time around. And we’re gonna go out and we’re gonna be confident, because there’s no way that we’re gonna be stopped again this time.

“We want to play in the World Cup, and yeah, I need every single player on that roster to believe that we’re going to be there, and to fight with everything to make sure that we are.”