For about half a decade, and for the vast majority of his groundbreaking career, Christian Pulisic could confidently be described as a winger. He was a versatile attacker who often wore the No. 10 shirt, but he was not yet ready for the vaunted role of central playmaker. He would start wide left or wide right. Sometimes he played the lead role, but sometimes he struggled. He has been a peripheral figure more often than not – until now, in his breakout season.
In just over three months, Pulisic has already contributed to 16 goals for club and country; He scored his tenth of the season on Tuesday in AC Milan’s 3-1 Champions League win over Slovan Bratislava.
And he did it, for the fourth time this month, from a classic number 10 position – the position that has quietly become his.
On Tuesday he did it in transition. He combined with striker Tammy Abraham and broke through the heart of Slovan’s defense.
For the U.S. Men’s National Team, he has excelled in a similar role and in multiple phases of the game over the past two weeks.
In the first leg of a CONCACAF Nations League quarter-final against Jamaica, he drifted away from his typical position on the left wing and floated between the Jamaican lines in search of space. In the fifth minute he found it and sent a through ball to Ricardo Pepi, the only goal of the match.
Four days later, in the second leg, his new role seemed to be taking shape. With Tim Weah on the left and Yunus Musah on the right, Pulisic played centrally in a 4-2-3-1. This time he spotted a hole in the Jamaican defense, sprinted through and collected a pass from Weston McKennie to open the scoring.
He later doubled the US lead with a shot from the top of the penalty area that went past Jamaican goalkeeper Andre Blake for an own goal.
And during his 68 minutes on the pitch, he looked dangerous, confident and free.
Christian Pulisic’s positional evolution
Pulisic is of course no stranger to the central areas. He often played there as a teenager. He was a No. 10 for the U.S. youth national teams. He was a central creator in the early days of former USMNT head coach Gregg Berhalter. “I have played a lot in the middle and I feel comfortable there,” he said in 2019.
But at Borussia Dortmund, and then at Chelsea, he was neither prepared nor confident in the responsibility that comes with a central role in Europe’s elite competitions. He wasn’t strong enough on the ball, not intelligent enough off the ball, and not sharp enough in tight spaces. So he was shunted out wide and tasked with creating from less coveted areas and less dangerous positions.
Meanwhile, he was still receiving money from the national team some freedom. But as the USMNT roster grew stronger around him, his role became more rigid. For years he almost always played on the left of a 4-3-3. When in possession he shifted inside, but his basic position was that of a winger.
Then Mauricio Pochettino arrived; and in November Pochettino started tinkering.
At the same time in Italy, AC Milan manager Paulo Fonseca has moved Pulisic to the center. In his last four Serie A and Champions League starts he has played between two wingers, something between an attacking midfielder and a second striker. He doesn’t go deep to get to the ball, as some old-fashioned number 10s would do; rather, he drifts around looking for space and discovers opportunities to cut in behind the opponent’s defense.
In his biggest match of the season, at the Santiago Bernabeu, against Real Madrid, he created a goal by combining with striker Alvaro Morata and bursting through the middle space.
For the USMNT, he outpaced Pepi, but also provided the young striker with quality opportunities.
His movement was diverse for both club and country. His actions were dynamic and smart.
As a winger, he already played the best football of his career earlier this year. His evolution back to a central position appears to be the next phase of his continued development.
