Christian Pulisic explains why it was the ‘right time’ to leave Chelsea as USMNT star feels ‘wanted’ at AC Milan

The United States international was not always shown that affection at Stamford Bridge, with a four-year stint in west London seeing the 24-year-old forward struggle to nail down a regular starting berth. He did become a history-making Champions League winner while with the Blues, while netting 26 goals through 145 appearances, but always faced fierce competition for places while dealing with regular fitness setbacks. He has told Men in Blazers of severing ties with Chelsea: “It wasn’t necessarily one moment where it hit move, just over time and how the season went, with a year left on my contract, it felt like the right time to move for my career. At the end of the day, this move felt like a no-brainer.”

Pulisic took the decision to leave England when Serie A giants Milan came calling, with a €22 million (£19m/$24m) transfer completed. On his reasons for heading to Italy, the talented winger said: “I spoke with the directors, I was also on a call with the coach [Pioli]. You want to get a good feel and feel like you’re wanted. Everyone at the club made me feel like that, they gave me a really good feeling before even setting foot here.”

Pulisic has also revealed that he contacted Olivier Giroud, Fikayo Tomori and Ruben Loftus-Cheek before committing to a big move – with there plenty of familiar faces waiting for him at San Siro. He added: “I spoke to all of the ex-Chelsea players, they told me the ins and outs of the club and honestly they all spoke really highly of it. They all made it sound like it was a great opportunity for me. I trusted them and they’ve helped so much with the transition as well.”

Pulisic made an immediate impact with Milan in pre-season - as he contributed a number of assists to the collective cause – and will, after being joined at San Siro by fellow countryman Yunus Musah, be hoping to make his Serie A bow for the Rossoneri when they take in a trip to Bologna on Monday.