Christian Pulisic lit up the Santiago Bernabeu with an inspiring role in AC Milan’s 3-1 win over Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League.
He picked up an assist thanks to a brilliant set-piece delivery on Malick Thiaw’s opening goal and was a menace for the defenders.
The USMNT star also played a pivotal role in helping set up Alvaro Morata’s goal and troubled opposition players with his movement.
With his heroics, Pulisic took his personal tally to two goals and an assist in four Champions League games this season as well as 11 goal contributions (seven goals, four assists) in 14 overall games.
Pulisic’s bright performance at the Santiago Bernabeu even won over Thierry Henry.
The Arsenal legend has had his share of controversies concerning the USMNT forward. In the past, Henry has criticized Pulisic for failing to bring something special to his team’s attack.
Even earlier this season after AC Milan’s loss to Liverpool, in which Pulisic scored, the Frenchman refused to praise him or even ask him questions as part of the CBS Sports panel.
Well, that perception might’ve changed after seeing the former Chelsea winger produce an impressive display against the European champions.
Pulisic appeared in an interview with the CBS Sports panel after the Real Madrid match.
But after talking with host Kate Abdo and pundits Micah Richards and Jamie Carragher for a bit, Henry voluntarily stepped up to relay a message to the USMNT star.
He stated: “Christian, I have something to say. I’ve been saying for a very long time that people were asking me what you need to do to play and perform. And I’ve always said that is on you to show people what you need to do and right now, you are doing that every week. So play with your chest out because you are doing really well. Now we can talk about what you are doing, because you are doing it more often than not so well done.”
Thierry Henry complimenting Christian Pulisic in his post-game interview pic.twitter.com/6qx0889PY2
— shedaina (@ShedainaD) November 5, 2024
So for years of criticizing Pulisic and not having much good to say about him, Henry finally broke the tensions between them to appreciate his quality.
But the problem is, even this bit of appreciation doesn’t seem totally genuine or inspiring.
Apart from the term ‘well done’, Henry’s comments almost come off as disregarding Pulisic’s past achievements.
He seems to discreetly indicate that Pulisic deserves praise only for his ongoing form, but not for whatever he’s done in recent years.
This is even though the USMNT star played a role in helping Chelsea win the 2020/21 UEFA Champions League titles and his heroics with the USMNT (31 goals, 19 assists in 71 games).
That is why Henry’s ‘praise’ isn’t being perceived as totally genuine.
His comments have been labeled as a ‘backhanded compliment’, which is a statement that seems positive but actually contains a subtle insult or criticism.
The ex-Arsenal striker has also been accused of not really expressing any ‘love’ for Pulisic or his good work with his comments and how his ‘praise’ even comes off a bit disrespectful.
Pulisic, to his credit, held his resolve and thanked Thierry for his kind words.
In reality, he really won’t care what the Frenchman thinks about him and is more focused on maintaining his bright form and prove himself as one of European football’s most lethal wingers.
