American and AC Milan forward Christian Pulisic was named US Soccer's men's player of the year for 2023 on Thursday, tying Landon Donovan for the most wins by a USMNT player with four.
The 25-year-old winger from Hershey, Pennsylvania, also won in 2017, 2019 and 2021, while Donovan won the award for the fourth time in 2010, at the age of 28.
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Pulisic obtained 53% of the votes, followed by Yunus Musah (21.5%) and Ricardo Pepi (12.9%).
“It's an honor to win this award again for the fourth time,” Pulisic said. “It was an incredible season for me. I always enjoy playing with the national team and winning more trophies with the national team. Of course, coming here to AC Milan has been a really exciting year. I have enjoyed it a lot.” , so I'm very grateful to win an award like this.”
The American star helped his team win the Concacaf Nations League title in June with a 2-0 victory over Canada and also helped guide them to qualification for the 2024 Copa América, which will take place this summer in the United States.
Pulisic moved from Chelsea to Milan last summer and has so far enjoyed a stellar first season in Serie A, scoring six league goals and adding five assists for Stefano Pioli's third-place team.
Since it's awards season, we thought we'd get a “Hollywood Person” to announce this year's Men's Player of the Year award… pic.twitter.com/fCVcLA1Vbj
— US Men's National Soccer Team (@USMNT) January 18, 2024
“If you join Landon in something related to the national team, you are doing something right,” Pulisic said. “He's a legend. I looked up to him, so I'm grateful to be in that conversation. I hope to keep pushing and I hope he's not the last.”
Kevin Paredes, a 20-year-old winger from South Riding, Virginia, who plays for Wolfsburg, was named Young Player of the Year.
He made eight appearances with the under-20 team in the 2022-23 cycle, debuted with the national team in September against Oman and became a frequent substitute and occasional starter in the Bundesliga.
Paredes obtained 59% of the votes, followed by Benjamín Cremaschi (12%) and Gianluca Busio (10.8%).
Votes were cast by American coaches and players who made an appearance in 2023, the USSF Board of Directors and Athlete Council, head coaches and athletic directors of the professional league, members of the media and former players and administrators.
There is no set definition of eligibility for the youth award, but it is typically open to players under the age of 23 who have appeared in a youth national team camp during the year.
Associated Press reporting contributed to this report.
