Lalas tells Pulisic's dad to STOP liking tweets criticizing Chelsea and Tuchel

Alexi Lalas has told Christian Pulisic's father Mark to stop liking tweets criticizing Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel and the amount of playing time his son is getting for the Blues.

Pulisic Snr was spotted over the weekend hitting the like button on Twitter after Leeds beat Chelsea 3-0 at Elland Road. Pulisic came on as a substitute and his dad liked tweets that questioned how players such as Kai Havertz and Mason Mount were being selected ahead of the USA star.

'Christian Pulisic is under a microscope, more so than any US player, let's be honest, in history,' Lalas said on his State of the Union Podcast. 'Anything that happens directly or indirectly around him will be dissected.

'He (Mark) at times has been liking tweets that are critical of Tuchel, about the time or lack of time Pulisic is getting at Chelsea. Pulisic is now a man, he is no longer the boy that we saw. He is more than able to fight his battle, whether on social media or in real life.

'This shouldn't be a big problem but don't think that human beings don't see these things and they don't impact things. To Mark Pulisic, I love that you're supporting your son... but he's a man, he can stand up for himself. He doesn't need you to do that and that's because the way you raised him. You can take pride in that.'

Pulisic currently has a fringe role in the Chelsea setup since Raheem Sterling arrived from Manchester City and all three of his Premier League appearances have coem as a substitute this season.

Lalas was asked on his podcast what it would take for Pulisic to join Jesse Marsch at Leeds - where the American coach has made a fantastic start to the season.

Pulisic has been linked with a move to Manchester United this summer and the United States international wants regular first-team action with the World Cup later in the year.

'I don't think anyone needs to twist Jesse's arm,' Lalas, who played 96 times for the United States in his own soccer career, said. 'What would have to happen is Pulisic would have to be so desperate to get out he would say "that is where I want to go" and Chelsea have to be ok with that.

'Maybe it's much more realistic because if Christian Pulisic goes to Manchester United, you are making a rival that much better.

'If Pulisic goes to Leeds, notwithstanding what happened over the weekend (Leeds beat Chelsea 3-0), I don't think you're hurting yourself when I think about it from a Chelsea perspective.

'What has to happen? It has to make sense for Pulisic and Tuchel, and for Chelsea.'

Lalas added that on a wider level, US soccer has never had higher stock than at this current moment in time - thanks to what Marsch is doing at Leeds along with new summer signings Brendan Aaronson and Tyler Adams, as well as Pulisic's overall success.

'Right now the credibility for American players in the EPL in particular is at an all-time high, in general and the EPL, when you have players like Aaronson and Adams doing very well,' Lalas said. 'It's still early days.

'But also the credibility in coaching, for Jesse Marsch in the way that he is looked at and he understands that the things that he does and the things that he says are going to be scrutinized and used as evidence, positively or negatively, for what American coaches are going for.

'I think Pulisic has transcended, he is a great player who just happens to be American.'

Leeds is next in action on Saturday, away to Brighton in the Premier League.