Pulisic on Conceicao tactics, Ibrahimovic advice and ‘LeBron James of soccer’ meme | OneFootball

Christian Pulisic has described his Milan coach Sergio Conceicao as ‘an intense guy’, has revealed the messages that Zlatan Ibrahimovic has sent him and insists that he only sees the funny side to the viral video clip that labelled him ‘the LeBron James of soccer’.

The USMNT star sat down for an interview with Sports Illustrated during the release of Milan’s new fourth kit, which the team debuted during the 1-0 win over Hellas Verona in Serie A on Saturday.

A snippet from an episode of the US TV Show ‘Pawn Stars’ has regularly gone viral over the last few years, after the American was dubbed ‘the LeBron James of soccer’.

“I’ve heard it a lot. When we were in Saudi, a random kid just shouted it to me, but that’s just like typical,” Pulisic told Sports Illustrated about the clip.

“If anyone thinks that people are being serious and people that want to debate like ‘oh he’s nowhere near where LeBron is’, I don’t think that either, so it doesn’t bother me. To me. It’s a funny meme and that’s it.”

Pulisic on Milan, Ibrahimovic and favourite memories

epa11804247 AC Milan’s Chrisitan Pulisic (front) celebrates scoring the 1-1 goal during the Supercoppa Italiana semi-final match between Juventus FC and AC Milan, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 03 January 2025. EPA-EFE/STR

Pulisic went on to discuss his start to life with Milan, where he has become a fan favourite after putting in a consistent string of decent performances since his transfer from Chelsea in the summer of 2023.

“Now with Milan, I think it’s been the perfect step for me. The club put a lot of trust in me right from the start. It’s taught me a lot more consistency, playing at the highest level over whole seasons instead of in spurts, and maintaining that level.

“Just giving me confidence to be one of the best players and to have that confidence to express myself and feel a bit freer in my game, I think that’s one of the best things you can have as an attacking player.”

What has been his most memorable moment in a Milan shirt so far?

“Debuts with the club, you never forget. For me, the biggest time are the first home games, that’s when you really feel it. That’s the moment, when you come to Milan because that stadium is amazing, putting on the shirt and feeling that, yeah.”

“When you walk around the building, you’ll see pictures of the legends, of them winning trophies, the Ballon d’Ors that have come out of here, the Champions Leagues, it is a very historic club.”

Pulisic also discussed his relationship with Milan advisor Zlatan Ibrahimovic: “Once you get to know him, he’s pretty straight forward. He’ll tell you exactly what he’s thinking.

“He told me straight up what I can expect from the club. Through the tough times he’s reached out to me as well. I think he cares a lot about the players. He’s asked me ‘how are you doing? How’s your head doing?’”

Pulisic on Conceicao and Supercoppa success

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA – JANUARY 06: Christian Pulisic of AC Milan celebrates scoring his team’s second goal during the Italian Super Cup Final between FC Internazionale and AC Milan at Kingdom Arena on January 06, 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images)

And what about his performance in the Supercoppa Italiana victory in January?

“It felt like a final. You have those nerves, you just want to get out on the field and play. It’s crazy in Saudi because the games are at like 10pm, so you’re waiting around all day, anxious to play. I’ve been in some big games, some big moments before, it had that same feeling.”

Pulisic then gave an assessment of his current Milan boss, Conceicao.

He labelled the coach: “An intense guy, I think just very, very passionate. You can tell the passion he has for the game and his winning mentality is what stands out the most.

“A lot of times when you get a new manager it can be really difficult because you’re playing every couple of days, so it’s not super easy to put everything in in a short time because you’re always playing.”

“He’s very clear, to be free with the ball and take risks, us attacking players particularly.”