Chelsea's Captain America starting to put up Superhero numbers

"I don't know," Maurizio Sarri said when asked of Christian Pulisic's transfer to Chelsea back in January. "I didn't know anything about Pulisic on Tuesday." Of course, Captain America was one player Sarri never had the opportunity to use at Stamford Bridge. When the deal was announced, it was confirmed the American would spend the second half of the season on loan with Borussia Dortmund before his summer arrival at Chelsea. 

At the time, the youngster wasn't viewed as a replacement for Eden Hazard, with Chelsea routinely batting away reports that the Belgian would depart for Real Madrid, but it was perhaps one of the worst kept secrets in football that was finally made public back in the summer. 

Yet despite a hefty price tag, Pulisic wasn't a guaranteed starter at Stamford Bridge. The 21-year-old started the Super Cup against Liverpool and subsuquent league meetings with Leicester, Norwich and Sheffield United, but made just one Chelsea appearance in September, that coming in the 7-1 demolition job of Grimsby in the Carabao Cup. 

Stiff competition, coupled with Pulisic's participation in the 2019 Gold Cup, of which the United States made it to the final before falling to Mexico at the final hurdle, meant Blues boss Frank Lampard was apprehensive about possible burn out, which might explain the lack of competitive action for the west London side for a month. With Willian, Pedro, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Mason Mount all vying for starting spots, too, it made Pulisic's job all the more difficult to nail down a regular first team spot. 

"What he needs to do is work, work daily, work to show within the group that he deserves to play as all the players do, so that’s what the focus on everyone is," Lampard said of Pulisic at the beginning of October. It wasn't until Chelsea's trip to Burnley that Pulisic would start another Premier League match, however. That said, while fans have been waiting patiently to see what the youngster will bring to the Premier League, Chelsea supporters were rewarded with a 10-out-of-10 display as the Blues landed an impressive 4-2 win at Burnley. 

It was the perfect, blustery evening that required a direct attacking outlet to put the Clarets to the sword and Pulisic didn't disappoint, netting a perfect hat-trick to secure his first WhoScored man of the match of the season. Riding the crest of a wave, Pulisic followed up his barnstorming display with star showings in wins over Watford and Crystal Palace as Lampard oversaw six successive league wins, a feat Chelsea hadn't achieved since the were crowned champions in 2016/17 under Antonio Conte. 

"I thought he was first-class today, as he has been recently," Lampard said in the wake of Chelsea's 2-0 win over Crystal Palace as he singled out Pulisic for praise and deservedly so. Three successive WhoScored man of the match awards means only John McGinn (4) has more individual gongs than the winger (3) in the Premier League this season. A goal in the weekend's win over Palace means Pulisic has had a direct hand in seven league goals this term at a rate of a goal or assist every 81 minutes, that the fifth best of the 39 players to have had a hand in five or more goals in England's top tier this term. 

Having never had a direct hand in more than nine goals in a single Bundesliga season with Borussia Dortmund, Pulisic is on track to enjoy his most prolific league campaign to date and Chelsea fans will be hoping his hip injury, which has ruled him out of international duty with the US national team this month, isn't too serious and that he will be available for the Manchester City clash when domestic duties resume. 

Indeed, the two Premier League games Chelsea have lost this season came in matches Pulisic didn't start, those coming in losses to Manchester United and Liverpool, two of the Blues' top six rivals. If Pulisic can be fit to face City, then it will be a huge boost for Lampard, but also a show of faith in how far the American has come since his arrival in London with Pulisic mustering just 32 minutes in the 4-0 loss at United on the opening weekend of the campaign. He was an unused sub in the 2-1 home defeat to Liverpool, but he proved how influential he can be against the Premier League's big hitters having put in a solid showing against the latter in the UEFA Super Cup. 

Only Mateo Kovacic (3.3) is completing more dribbles per 90 than Pulisic (3.2) of all Chelsea players this season, while 1.9 key passes per 90 by the latter is also a commendable return for a player who clearly knows how to beat an opponent and is beginning to exhibit an end product that has previously been found wanting. There, of course, remains room for improvement, but in this youthful Chelsea squad, Lampard is willing to allow the squad to grow and develop together, which can only be a good thing for this Blues outfit. 

And with Pulisic more than capable of beating a man, there is greater balance to the side. Lampard has largely favoured using Willian from the right in the Premier League this season and, should he then use a 4-2-3-1 system, Mason Mount behind Tammy Abraham. With the Brazilian favouring to drift in field, Lampard needs a winger who can beat a man to start from the left, be it Callum Hudson-Odoi or Pulisic. 

The duo are right footed by nature, but the space opened up by Abraham's constant drifting across the final third means the likes of Mount, Willian and Pulisic can exploit the striker's movement to open up goalscoring positions, be it created by the trio or by the deeper lying midfielders to pick the right pass to pry apart a defence. 

What's more, is that Pulisic's approach is reminiscent to Hazard's in that both started on the left before cutting onto their right to allow the full-backs to push on. At left-back, Lampard is spoiled for choice with Marcos Alonso and Emerson both able to provide attacking support down the left when Pulisic does utilise a statistically calculated WhoScored style of play of 'likes to cut inside' and his rise to the fore has undoubtedly eased the Belgian's high profile departure. 

Long may it continue, too, as far as Chelsea fans are concerned. Since his return to the Chelsea starting XI, Pulisic's WhoScored rating of 8.91 is better than any other Premier League player and with a meeting with a defensively sub-standard Manchester City side looming, supporters are hoping Pulisic can be fit to start at the Etihad Stadium as he dazzles following his return to Lampard's first choice XI.