Pulisic arrives in Italy ahead of AC Milan move: 'I'm excited to start'

Posted Thursday, July 13, 2023 by thescore.com

MILAN (AP) — United States forward Christian Pulisic arrived in Italy on Wednesday for a medical test with AC Milan before an expected transfer from Chelsea.

The 24-year-old Pulisic, who has one year left on his contract at Chelsea, is expected to sign a four-year deal with the Rossoneri and become the third American to play for the club after Oguchi Onyewu and Sergino Dest.

"I'm very happy to be here. I'm excited. I'm excited to start with this historic club," Pulisic told reporters waiting for him at Milan's Malpensa airport. "It's legendary and I'm really excited to come here and try to win some titles here."

Milan is a seven-time European champion and won the last of its 19 Serie A titles in 2022. The Rossoneri lost to city rival Inter Milan in the Champions League semifinals last season.

Milan, which is owned by American investment firm RedBird, is preparing to pay a transfer fee of 20 million euros ($22 million) for Pulisic, according to the Gazzetta dello Sport. That would be less than half of what Chelsea paid Borussia Dortmund for Pulisic in 2019.

Hampered by injuries, Pulisic never fully lived up to expectations in England. Although he did win the Champions League, European Super Cup and Club World Cup with the Blues.

Pulisic would be the second player to leave Chelsea for AC Milan in this transfer window after Ruben Loftus-Cheek also signed for the Rossoneri. Pulisic could also be reunited with former Chelsea teammates Olivier Giroud and Fikayo Tomori at Milan.

Pulisic has played 60 times for the United States, scoring 25 goals. The Pennsylvania native helped the squad reach the last 16 at last year's World Cup in Qatar.