The goalkeeper believes that his countryman has what it takes to be a success at Stamford Bridge
U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard believes that his international team-mate Christian Pulisic will be a hit at Chelsea.
Pulisic sealed a £58 million (€64m/$73m) move to Chelsea this week, with the 20-year-old set to stay at Borussia Dortmund on loan for the rest of the season.
Howard knows what it takes to succeed in the English top flight, having spent 13 seasons in the Premier League with Manchester United and Everton.
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And the 39-year-old, now with the Colorado Rapids in MLS, thinks that Pulisic can become another American success story in England.
“The Premier League presents its own trials and tribulations, it’s a rough-and-tumble league, it’s up and down, but he’s shown to be pretty strong even though he’s not the biggest guy in the world,” Howard told ESPN FC.
“I think his talents will lend themselves very well to the way Chelsea play football.”
The Blues may be one of the Premier League’s most high-profile sides, but Howard believes that the experience Pulisic has gained at Dortmund will serve him well in his next career move.
“It is a massive club, but he’s played for a massive club already,” the goalkeeper said.
“Dortmund is no slouch, and he went there under Jurgen Klopp and he’s grown up there and learned a lot of his trade in the Bundesliga.”
The amount Chelsea paid Dortmund more than tripled the largest transfer fee ever paid for an American player, which is partly due to Pulisic’s performances for the U.S. national team.
Pulisic has scored nine times in 23 appearances for the United States, and carried the team through their ultimately unsuccessful campaign to qualify for the 2018 World Cup.
Howard saw those performances firsthand, and insists that Pulisic is ready to live up to his huge price tag.
“He’s played a big part for the U.S. national team, so as much as the price tag is massive, which it is, he’s ready to perform.”