Timing is everything: USMNT star Christian Pulisic is big in big game, catalyzes AC Milan's Champions League win over Real Madrid

There probably isn't a more difficult task to solve in club soccer than Real Madrid away. The Spanish giants are the kings of this competition, this past season and seemingly every one that came before it. In these sorts of games, the Real Madrid aura almost always proves too much. At some point, everyone blinks.

Well, not everyone. Christian Pulisic certainly didn't, and neither did AC Milan. Behind another big-game performance from their American superstar, AC Milan stared down Real Madrid and won Tuesday, making quite a statement in this new-look Champions League group stage.

Pulisic was the catalyst, as he so often is. Behind his early assist, Milan went on to earn a gigantic 3-1 win over the reigning champions , making one hell of a statement after a tepid start to the Champions League campaign. Entering this game, Milan felt like they were teetering; now, it seems they might just cruise right on through to the bigger challenges ahead.

With Pulisic in this kind of form, they'll be ready for any one of those opportunities. The American was fantastic once again, as he has been all season. His goalscoring numbers have slowed down in the recent stretch, but Pulisic is still finding ways to impact and - ultimately - win games, He did it again on Tuesday, directly assisting one Milan goal while kickstarting the sequence for another to help his side earn a victory as important as any this season.