Spartansd

While I am a rather ardent USA football fan and have great knowledge of that sport. I have come to enjoy the EPL quite a bit and Chelsea was my choise mainly for Pulisic but honestly I am not a huge fan of his after watching him for the past few years. Some items I think many seem to like to overlook but has been mentioned above. 1- being available to play or not play due to health is a skill just like scoring goals. 2- Chelsea has way too many players that lack the stay healthy skill. Based on the above 2 points this is what I am seeing. Players are the tier 1 players for a reason. When you have to play the backups in place of the starters you can not expect the tier 1 level production. I realize many are saying no sh*te. But where I think this is really hurting Potter is that it is hard to effect the play on the pitch if you are spending all your time making sure you have 11 to play. How can you really work on strategy when you have a revolving door at the doctors office. And not to mention a patchwork team of skills. This team seems to lack the proper mix of players skills and positions needed. It would be one thing to have 6 elite goal scores because you can make that work. Chelsea has ZERO elite goal scores and a bunch of really nice wings and "scoring" forwards. But who on this team would you call a goal scorer? Like a pure offensive player/machine. Who are they building around? I watched Wrexham the other day I chuckled because they have a better plan and mix of players than Chelsea right now. Not saying the skill levels are on the same plane but the mix of players is much more aligned to the skills needed on the pitch in each position. This has been bothering me for some time. The best teams know who is going to score goals. They know who is their best defensive forward. They know these things and they game plan around how to best utilize those players to create success on the pitch. Last season Chelsea got by because of overall team spirit that overcame the lack of proper player mix. That can only last so long. Eventually the mix players will find their level. And until you can name who the goal scorer is on this squad you will be fighting to get into the top 4 of the table.

I think Chelsea should hold on to CP until the Summer unless they can get good value. He is a nice player and can contribute from may different positions. Not to mention he seems to be a good/decent club house guy and teammate. He just seems to be a player that is again too good to let walk but not good enough to chase after. And I still feel he needs to either decide if he is a goal scorer or an assist guy. Because for me right now he does not seem to do either at a high level. And I 100% agree that he needs to be stronger on the ball. Against the Netherland in the WC you saw some final 3rd players that were men against the rather weak US defenders. I do not know if CP can handle it but 5-10 pounds of muscle would do him well and would likely help with the nagging injury issues. There is definitely something off on this years squad. No business playing even with N-F. It is that type of play that gets you put out of the Champions League. Just look at the roster spend for each squad and justify that result.

I would take Pulisic over Sterling most nights. But Pulisic does seem to be a man without a position. Is he a striker? I mean yes but not someone you build a team around. Is he a mid? Not even close. He seems to do best when being allowed to run around with seeming little defensive requirements. This is not to say he does not play defense or play hard. It just seems that his best moments tend to be on offense rushing the net or picking rebounds. He is also very good with the ball but does not seem to have the ability to set up the other strikers. Due to his size I would suggest that he needs to make himself more into the mold of a Mount if he wants to reach a higher level. He has the dibbling skills but seems to lack the understanding of when to go and stop and drop when playing that connecting role. The obvious struggle with him right now is that he does not fit into the Chelsea lineup. But is talented enough to not want to give away. He is a nice 12th man who can play a bunch of different positions well and can give you a goal now and again.

Been following EPL and the larger World Soccer scene for maybe 5 years. The interest started from attending a few soccer matches (yes I am an American) for a local club called DCFC. Detroit City Football Club. They were basically not even in a tier system when I first watched. They have now climbed into what would be basically the Tier 2 level in the USA. I started following Chelsea some as I was following the main clubs in the EPL and the big name players like Messi and Ronaldo while they were in the Spanish League. My interested in Chelsea has definitely increased as they went on to win a bunch the last few years and then I found out that an American was on the team. Ironically I have realized that I had stopped watching or tracking the US players as none seemed any good on the world stage. My wife coming from a family still mostly in Italy was a big Italian fan so we watched them in the World Cup (not this year LOL). Now I am tracking a few EPL teams and also a friends team Nottingham Forest. Which honestly seems to be filled with goon and thugs. Football is definitely a beautiful game when played properly. Watching the most creative teams that play as one is more enjoyable than any sport I have watched.

First post so I will admit that I am a Pulisic fan. With that said I do not see where he is head and shoulders better than anyone playing in front of him when the top lines are posted. But what I will say that it seems like some players get the "justify taking them out" treatment while Pulisic gets the "justify why I should put him in" treatment. Which begs the question why? I like his effort, energy, and creativity. But maybe this is a hang over from the past few years. It seems clear that his coaches seem to lack confidence in his performance or health or both. And maybe he is better suited for a less physical league. The PL is the most physical league and maybe his game translates better to a more gentile" league. Wondering if anyone who does not love or hate him can shed some light. As I was also surprised how little he is playing verses his level of play of late. It seemed clear TT was no longer seeing him as anything but a fringe player. And current HC seems to be even more committed to not playing him. Again he is no legendary talent. His is a very solid player that should be starting on some team.