Chelsea may not have walked away with the Super Cup trophy last night, but there were many positive aspects to take from the game, both on an individual level and as a collective level, wherein the Blues were able to match, and even outplay the Champions of Europe for long stretches of the game.
And unlike in Sunday’s 4-0 beatdown suffered at Old Trafford, Chelsea were able to reap the rewards of quality play against Liverpool, scoring twice, hitting the woodwork once (again!), and coming close countless other times.
Central to many of those efforts was young Christian Pulisic, making his full debut for the club after his big-money move in the summer. It was his pass out from among six (6!) Red shirts that Olivier Giroud converted for the game’s first goal. And it was his shot that seemingly gave Chelsea a two-goal lead, but only for the briefest of moments, before the marginal offside decision called it back (still waiting on conclusive replay evidence for that one). His direct running caused problems all night, or at least until his second-half substitution.
Afterwards, head coach Frank Lampard was rightly pleased, just as he was with all of his players.
“Yeah I was pleased and there is a lot more to come. The expectancy is right, he is a big signing for us but you have to remember his age. He’s 20 and come into the league, into this game, against Liverpool, one of the most intense teams in football.
“It took a bit of time early in the game to get his feeling. But once he did, you could see his confidence in carrying the ball and to create. I am really happy with him. There is lots, lots more to come. Again, [he’s showing] all the good signs for what he can be for the club.”
-Frank Lampard; source: Goal
With Pedro showing few signs of slowing down at age 32, recently anointed No.10, Willian coming back to full fitness, and Hudson-Odoi not far behind either — plus, Mason Mount also an option — Pulisic will have plenty of competition for minutes on the wings. So far, Lampard has handled his introduction to the team well, and Pulisic has shown great work rate and quality in the final third. As many newcomers to the league, especially young players, can attest to, he needs to come to terms with the physicality and the tempo, in general, but there’s no reason to believe he won’t do so, and do so quickly.
Hopefully there’s a lot more to come from Christian and Chelsea indeed.