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Report: Barcelona monitoring Christian Pulisic

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Christian Pulisic’s performances have reportedly caught the eye of a European giant.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona is closely monitoring the 18-year-old U.S. Men’s National Team winger. According to the report, Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu is determined to not let the club fall into complacency and is hoping to add several younger options to compete with the team’s stars. Bartomeu reportedly wants to build a stronger core around Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar as the club looks to prepare for the next decade.

Pulisic is reportedly one of many targets of those plans, although the report says that some within the club believe that the fee needed to sign the winger would be “absurd”. However, the club reportedly sees Pulisic as a player that can follow summer signings Samuel Umtiti and Lucas Digne in pushing some of the club’s regulars for time in the lineup. Among those stars is Messi, who the club is reportedly looking to push rather than ease into his decline.

After starting in Champions League action midweek, Pulisic and Borussia Dortmund return to action on Saturday against Ingolstadt.

Comments

  1. I want him to stay at Dortmund. I have been a Dortmund fan 2010. I do not want him to leave. He also is getting a good amount of playing time too.

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  2. There has to be a marketing element here as well – the American market will definitely tune in a little closer if he’s on your team. Right now his name isn’t mainstream, but he’s one big tournament away from superstardom here.

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    • Yeah Barcelona are really concerned about that because currently not many people in the American market tune in to watch their games, with little known stars like Messi, Suarez, Neymar, and Iniesta… Barcelona: totally unknown in the United States, no fan base at all, no one tuning in to watch the best team of the last decade. (rolls eyes)

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      • You can hardly argue that an American player at the club wouldn’t draw more interest for the club here.

  3. After the 2014 World Cup, Fabian Johnson was also linked to Barcelona, so that makes Pulisic the second American to draw interest from them… not counting young kids like Ben Lederman, obviously.

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  4. Forgive me for not caring. Barcelona may “monitor” every decent player in Europe because they have the largest network of scouts and train kids from age 6 onward, but it doesn’t mean they’re eyeing him as a contributor. That club is also not known for being loyal to its players. Gio Dos Santos actually played for Barcelona and showed well and he was sent away never to return because they reached into their pockets and bought five players to replace him ahead of the other three they had waiting. IF you’re going to be signed by Barca, best to wait until they are willing to pay ridiculous money and force them to pencil you into the eleven based on having invested considerably.

    Pulisic is in the perfect situation. He’s playing for a club that is in CL every year and in a league that is, top to bottom, better than La Liga, Serie A, or the EPL. He’s earned their trust not by being a big signing but by working his way through the developmental system. He knows their tactics and their tactics suit his game. He’s in the perfect spot on his learning curve, getting quality minutes at a level that challenges him and on a team that is loaded at his position (which means he is being pushed in training and on the pitch). When BVB is at full strength, he may return to being a bench player, but he’s given them no reason to demote him from the first team which means he will continue to rotate even after Schurrle and Reus are back healthy (not to mention the other players who are currently injured).

    During the summer I was skeptical that he should have stayed rather than go elsewhere to a team with lower ambitions, a team where he could play week after week and be integral to their plans instead of a fringe player. I’m here to say I was dead wrong and he did the right thing by staying (and Dortmund did the right thing by putting a prohibitively high price on him).

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    • I’m sorry but since when has Barcelona not treated their players well. Gio wanted playing time so he left, the same with his brother, and each time the club has helped them make the move to where they wanted. If you want to see how Barca treat their players just look at how they helped Abidal through his treatment of his kidney cancer. Sure they go through a lot of players, but so do every big club in the world, they’re in constant need of top level players and can seldom afford to be patient with a young prospect.
      Second, while the Bundesliga might be better than La Liga, playing for Barcelona completely negates that, as he would be playing at top 2 club, if not the best club in the world, that has a track record of developing young players.

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      • Playing for Barcelona does us not a whole lot of good. For a start he’ll be playing a style we don’t and with players around him we can’t match. He’d also mostly be playing against middling clubs save their four league matches against the Madrid clubs.

  5. First I would imagine they are monitoring quite a few guys. Two, this now means Real Madrid will be monitoring CP as well. Three this would push CP into the midfield as he’s not ready to take a spot from Neymar, Messi, or Suarez. Last, is this a sign Barcelona is ready to move on from Neymar who is often rumored for exit.

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    • He already plays midfield. BVB plays a 4-1-4-1 that, when they control possession, shifts into what looks like a 4-3-3 because both side midfielders attack the box as the fullbacks come forward on either side of those two attacking midfielders. But he does just as much defending as attacking because BVB keeps the defensive lines tight on either side of the holding midfielder and leaves just Auba up in the attacking line. It’s one reason why they suffocate teams who try to build through the middle and end up controlling possession more often than not. He’s certainly shown the skills to be a winger but has all the responsibilities of a SMF.

      For Barca, he would definitely be considered for a LW or RW spot as a midfield role would push him more central than he’s used to and give him less support. He’s good as a “pesky” defender, not as one who gets stuck in and closes passing lanes.

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  6. I think there are two sides to things like this.

    One side, obviously playing for Barca and actually trying to win titles would be great. A dream that few will realize.

    Other side, sitting on the bench and only playing when you are going to win games with no pressure isn’t the first side.

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    • I am far from a Eurosnob (MLS season ticket holder) but it’s quite a stretch to argue that there is any downside of joining Barca as compared to MLS.

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      • IF Pulisic’s options were Barca or MLS….than yes I’d want him at Barca. Thankfully he has many other options as was evident by the number of teams he was linked with over the summer.

        Pulisic is an excellent talent in the making, but in order to reach his full potential he needs to be in the right position (team) and be playing. There are any number of top clubs/leagues where Pulisic would be successful….starting with BvB.

  7. Its not a fair comparison at this point, but Iniesta won’t be around forever and I could see Pulisic develop into that sort of player. Barca runs through a lot of young players though, and if your aren’t their product you basically have to be can’t miss or already fully formed at their level to get meaningful consistent playing time as a young player. As much as I’d like to see a US player at Barca, starting for Dortmund at 18 is mighty fine as far as his continued development. My overarching view about transfers remains: As Long As He Plays. I don’t see him playing much at Barca for the foreseeable future. Give him another year or two maybe. A 20 year old Barca player would be something.

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    • Well, it’s your biggest hint right off the bat that they aren’t rating him as capable of breaking their starting eleven but as a prospect they might develop and improve enough to push other players and maybe, if he caught lightning in a bottle, would become world class and force his way in. Contrast with their treatment of high profile signings; I doubt they ever said “Neymar will be monitored and we might sign him if the price is right” or “he can come in and help push the current players with an eye toward playing in the future”.

      The fee would always match their outlook, so to speak. For a player who they figure would come in and contribute first team minutes, I doubt they’d look upon BVB’s price as “absurd”… but for a kid they want to bring in for depth and to push other players, absolutely.

      Which is one reason I’m happy, in hindsight, that BVB set a prohibitively high price on him during the summer window even though at the time I had hoped they’d accept a bid for him to move to Liverpool, et al.

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      • It is a figment of speech. I can almost guarantee you, though, that they are monitoring 100’s of players between 10 – 20 (more when they are younger).

      • No, I don’t think there are 1,000 capable, but I bet there are a 1,000 they are “monitoring” if that means simply knowing who they are, certainly every player in La Liga and probably the second division is being monitored which is around 800 right there.

      • I doubt they are monitoring the back up keeper at Cadiz, or the fourth striker for Numancia. Although Barca has tremendous resources they aren’t monitoring every player Spain. I suppose it also depends on your definition of the word monitoring.

      • Considering how the US is a growing market for soccer overseas, it would seem logical that they have at least one US-born player on their watch list at all times

  8. That would be great for Pulisic, but how long would he have to wait for his chance IF he gets one. To get noticed by Barca, is a feat in itself. I say keep it up Pulisic, stay as long as you can with Dortmund.

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    • I agree. I think Pulisic isn’t yet where he can compete for minutes at Barca. He needs at least 2 years more seasoning and a lot more games. Dortmund is plenty good and he’s already playing Champions League. He’ll get more money if he waits a couple of years, too.

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  9. He won’t come cheap if Barca are serious about landing him. $20+ Million USD anyone?

    This dude has been improving game by game and seems fearless running at players.
    His technical quality, subtle touch and don’t forget speed is extremely rare for any US player in the past 20 years.

    There have been US players with 2 of the 3 qualities, but never all 3 at his age.

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    • “$20+ Million USD anyone?”

      Liverpool offered $14 million USD ($11 million pounds) and that wasn’t seriously considered, so yeah it would be $20 at minimum. Although his value is probably risen even more as he plays fairly consistently for Dortmund in both the Bundesliga and Champions League.

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