‘Pulisic needs to get nasty at Chelsea’ – Klinsmann convinced USMNT star can thrive in England

Christian Pulisic needs to get nasty at Chelsea, says Jurgen Klinsmann, with the United States international more than capable of proving his worth in the Premier League.

Those at Stamford Bridge are still waiting on that potential to be unlocked, with a marquee arrival in west London yet to deliver on a consistent basis.

That has led to Pulisic slipping down the pecking order under Frank Lampard, with the 21-year-old back on the bench for a 2-0 win over Brighton on Saturday.

Questions are being asked of whether a promising talent who burst onto the scene at Borussia Dortmund is capable of handling the demands of life in English football.

Klinsmann, who has worked with Pulisic in the USA set-up before, remains convinced that the talented playmaker can come good.

The former Tottenham striker has, however, offered some words of advice, telling ESPN: "You never know it's the right fit unless you do it.

"Christian did well to say: 'I'm going to throw myself in another cold water, go over to London and throw myself in the Premier League, and I have to fight through the system there'. So that's what he's in.

"He's a very special player, he's tremendously talented, but this is a big step, because Borussia Dortmund was also basically the club where he got formed into a professional player.

"He came out of the youth system there, he moved himself up, he had all the support within the club and now going to London - also to one of the biggest clubs in the world - you've got to bring your elbows out."

Klinsmann added, with Pulisic having taken to airing his frustration over a lack of playing time for Chelsea: "He will go through a phase now where more and more he needs to bring his elbows out to fight himself through the system there.

"Can he do it? Yes, absolutely he can do it, but you need to be patient, too, sometimes you forget he's a very young player.

"You're basically in a daily competition. Maybe in Dortmund he knew: 'I established myself already within the club to be a very special player. I get my minutes in, I get my games in, I'm a starter most of the time'.

"You don't have that automatic assurance at Chelsea. At Chelsea it goes from game to game, week to week. You're basically in training and you have to tell the coach: 'I'm in, I'm going to start this game'. So it's a little bit more cold, it's a bit more nasty.

"What I mean with the elbows is that you have to become nasty in order to make yourself a starter."

Pulisic initially impressed upon his arrival at Chelsea, but has not started a Premier League game since August 31 and has seen only 90 minutes of game time in the Carabao Cup during September.