Gregg Berhalter hopes Chelsea shakeup means more opportunity for Christian Pulisic
Less than two months before his first World Cup, U.S. men’s soccer coach Gregg Berhalter attended Wednesday’s Yankee game in the Bronx and was hopeful his star midfielder, Christian Pulisic, would benefit from Chelsea’s shakeup.
“I never like to comment on a colleague. Coaching is hard enough. So I’m not happy a guy lost his job. But if this means more opportunity for Christian, then it’s positive,” Berhalter said. “Because this is a guy who has proven at that level. And we’ll just have to wait and see.”
Pulisic’s struggled at Chelsea and his playing time was minimal under coach Thomas Tuchel, who was fired Wednesday by the team’s American owners.
Pulisic, if healthy, is a lock starter on the U.S. World Cup squad, which opens the tournament in Qatar on Nov. 21 against Wales.
Berhalter said he’ll set his roster by Sept. 14 and is about 85% finished. Berhalter, a product of Northern New Jersey, grew up a Red Sox fan because his godfather is Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski.
“How do you root against Yas when he’s family?” Berhalter said.
