Christian Pulisic’s strike for AC Milan against Lecce means that he has now outscored every single Chelsea player in open play this season.
WHAT HAPPENED?
Pulisic netted the first goal of the game as AC Milan played Lecce in Serie A, to leave former club Chelsea red-faced. The United States men’s national team star now has 10 open-play goals – as well as six assists – while Chelsea’s top scorer from open play this season is Nicolas Jackson, with nine. In-form Cole Palmer, meanwhile, has scored 16 goals, but only seven are from open play.
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Chelsea allowed Pulisic to leave for around €20m (£17m/$21m) last summer and he has gone on to recapture the form that he showed while he was impressing for Borussia Dortmund. He also remains a key player for the USMNT heading into the Copa America and then their home 2026 World Cup.
DID YOU KNOW?
Milan are second in Serie A and look set to finish there; they are 11 points behind leaders Inter and nine points ahead of third-placed Juventus. Chelsea, by comparison, are 11th in the Premier League, although they do have an FA Cup semi-final date with Manchester City on the horizon.
WHAT NEXT?
As well as Pulisic, Olivier Giroud and Rafael Leao scored against Lecce in a comfortable win; they will next face Roma in an all-Italian Europa League quarter-final on April 11. For Pulisic, it’s been an outstanding debut season in Serie A, where he has hit the ground running and looks entirely comfortable in his surroundings.