The English Premier League resuming play this week meant that Chelsea had their first match since March. But Christian Pulisic had actually been waiting a lot longer than that, having not played since January due to injury.
Today, with Chelsea down 1-0 at Villa Park, Pulisic came on and made an immediate impact, finishing off a cross on the back post to equalize.
Christian Pulisic is BACK. #MyPLSummer pic.twitter.com/dTY06YpFcT
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) June 21, 2020
Seconds later, Chelsea took the lead for good through Olivier Giroud:
Back in the groove! ⚽️@ChelseaFC score a pair to take the lead. #MyPLSummer pic.twitter.com/0sYUQPi8WY
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) June 21, 2020
After the match, Pulisic talked about what it meant to be back after such a long layoff:
😃🇺🇸 Christian Pulisic reacts to scoring on his Chelsea return, sparking big comeback win for #CFC #CFC #AVLCHE #USMNT pic.twitter.com/dX4mcD9Sb2
— Joe Prince-Wright (@JPW_NBCSports) June 21, 2020
Who knows when international soccer will resume, but with Pulisic, Gio Reyna, Tyler Adams, and many more young players finally hitting their stride in Europe, the USMNT might actually be relevant again. At the very least, Pulisic was certainly less rusty than the Villa Park irrigation system, which had a few issues.
Ah yes, no better time than to give the pitch at Villa Park a bit of a watering than *checks notes* 4:06 into the first half #MyPLSummer pic.twitter.com/ZLPPoPargr
— NBC Sports Soccer (@NBCSportsSoccer) June 21, 2020
All in all, hard to ask for a better return for Pulisic. Hopefully he can stay healthy, a phrase which has taken on an entirely new layer of meaning now.
