Anthony James Pulis (born 21 July 1984) is a Welsh football coach and former player. He is currently an assistant coach for Major League Soccer club Real Salt Lake.
A journeyman for much of his career Pulis represented Portsmouth, Stoke City, Torquay United, Plymouth Argyle, Grimsby Town, Bristol Rovers, Southampton, Lincoln City, Stockport County, Barnet and Aldershot Town during 10 years spent playing in England before moving abroad and establishing himself in the USL Pro with Orlando City. He made four appearances for the Wales under-21 team, but did not represent his country at senior level.
Club career Portsmouth Bristol-born Pulis began his career in 2000 as a trainee with Portsmouth whilst his father Tony managed the club. Despite his father's sacking after only 10 months in charge, Anthony stayed at Fratton Park, turning professional in July 2002 under Harry Redknapp. He made just one first team appearance for Pompey as a substitute in the 2–0 League Cup win away to Cardiff City on 9 November 2004.
Stoke City In December 2004, after failing to make an impact on the Portsmouth first team, Anthony Pulis and teammate Lewis Buxton each signed two-and-a-half-year contracts with Stoke City.Stoke swoop for young Pompey duo BBC Sport, 24 December 2004. Retrieved 21 December 2014.
Almost immediately after his arrival at Stoke, Anthony joined Torquay United on loan, making his league debut as a first-half substitute for Alex Russell as Torquay lost 2–1 at home to Stockport County on 1 January 2005. However his appearances were limited and his loan spell was cut short.
Pulis once again found his first team opportunities scarce after his father was dismissed and replaced by Johan Boskamp prior to the 2005–06 season. Towards the end of the 2005–06 season he was loaned to Plymouth Argyle, linking up with his father for the third time in his career.Plymouth boss signs son on loan BBC Sport, 9 March 2006
After his loan spell, Pulis returned to the Britannia Stadium for the 2006–07 season. He moved, along with Martin Paterson, to Grimsby Town on loan on 23 November 2006.Grimsby tie up treble loan swoop BBC Sport, 23 November 2006 However, he made only nine appearances before his loan spell was cut short due to injury.Mariners loanee returns to Stoke BBC Sport, 2 February 2007 In his second-last appearance, he was substituted at half-time as Grimsby suffered a 4–0 loss to Rochdale.Grimsby 0 – Rochdale 4 Soccerbase, 1 January 2007
The 2007–08 season started brightly for Pulis. He gained his first assist for the club, as his corner set up a Jon Parkin header in a 3–2 defeat to Southampton, however injury problems kept him sidelined for several months thereafter. He was loaned out again, on this occasion to Bristol Rovers, however he made only one appearance for the club before his loan spell was curtailed due to another injury. In his only appearance for the club, a 14-minute cameo in a 2–0 defeat to Doncaster Rovers, Pulis conceded a penalty kick and was booked.
Southampton In August 2008 Pulis moved to Southampton on a two-year contract a free transfer.
He joined League Two team Lincoln City on one-month loan in October 2009 making his debut on 10 October in a 1–0 away win against Macclesfield Town.Macclesfield 0 – 1 Lincoln City BBC Sport, 10 October 2009 Pulis became an instant first team regular at Lincoln but left the club when his loan contract expired on 7 January 2010.Two depart Lincoln City The Forgotten Imp, 7 January 2010 He had spent the previous six weeks on the injured list.
In October 2010, he joined Stockport County on loan for a month and made his debut for the club on 9 October 2010 in a match against Gillingham, a club his father managed, in which he scored a consolation goal for Stockport. The loan was extended into a second and third month.
Pulis joined Barnet on loan in February 2011 but was sent off 29 minutes into his debut, a 3–0 defeat at home to Torquay United.
Anthony Pulis was released by Southampton on 21 May 2011, without making a first team appearances.
Aldershot Town At the start of August 2011, it was announced that Pulis had signed for League Two side Aldershot Town, on a one-year contract. He went on to make five league and two League Cup appearances for the club.
Orlando City In January 2012 Pulis joined USL Pro side Orlando City. He scored his first goal for the Lions against the Richmond Kickers in a 2–0 win. In his three seasons at Orlando, the club won one USL Pro Championship and two Commissioner's Cups.
Pulis was a player-coach during his three years playing for Orlando and at the end of the 2014 season he announced his retirement from playing to move into coaching full-time.
Coaching career
Orlando City B On 15 October 2015, after spending one year as an assistant coach with Orlando City in MLS, Pulis was announced as the head coach of USL Championship club Orlando City B.
Saint Louis FC On 20 November 2017, Pulis stepped down as the head coach of Orlando City B and signed as a head-coach with Saint Louis FC. Pulis spent two seasons with Saint Louis FC. They qualified for the USL Play Offs in his first year, for the first time in club history then they made history again the following season by reaching the US Open Cup Quarter Finals, after beating MLS opponents Chicago Fire and FC Cincinnati on the way. Pulis finished with a record of 30-25-20 (W-L-D).
Inter Miami CF On 1 March 2020, Inter Miami CF announced Pulis as an assistant coach. Pulis worked alongside Diego Alonso in 2020 then Phil Neville in 2021.
Miami FC On 29 November 2021, Pulis was announced as the new head coach of Miami FC. After qualifying for the USL Play Offs in 2022 under Pulis, Miami FC lost in the Quarter Finals to Tampa Bay Rowdies. After a short tenure as Miami head coach, Pulis stepped down on 20 June 2023 to pursue other opportunities. Pulis finished with a record of 19-16-17 (W-L-D).
Real Salt Lake On 16 January 2024, it was announced that Pulis had joined Real Salt Lake's coaching staff as an assistant to head coach Pablo Mastroeni.
Personal life Pulis is a Catholic and regularly attends church. He is the son of Welsh football manager Tony Pulis and the nephew of former footballer Ray Pulis.
Career statistics Sourced from Soccerbase.com
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueFA CupLeague CupOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsPortsmouth2004–05Premier League0000100010Stoke City2004–05Championship00000000002005–06Championship00000000002006–07Championship10001000202007–08Championship1020100040Torquay United (loan)2004–05League One3000000030Plymouth Argyle (loan)2005–06Championship5000000050Grimsby Town (loan)2006–07League Two9000000090Bristol Rovers (loan)2007–08League One1000000010Southampton2008–09Championship00000000002009–10League One00000000002010–11League One0000000000Lincoln City (loan)2009–10League Two7010000080Stockport County (loan)2010–11League Two101200010131Barnet (loan)2010–11League Two4000000040Aldershot Town2011–12League Two5000201080Orlando City2012USL Pro15210——622013USL Pro17130——2012014USL Pro12130——151Career Total90512050201095
A. The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in the Football League Trophy.
References
External links Anthony Pulis Interview on BBC Sport