Kai Havertz: Chelsea star desperately needs competition
Cameron Smith
- 22 Aug 2022 19:06 BST
- 4 min read
Kai Havertz has entered his third season at Chelsea, and it truly is crunch time for his career at Stamford Bridge.
For the most part, the German's spell at Chelsea has relied upon big goals at crucial times - most notably the winner in the 2021 Champions League final - but overall has been a massive disappointment.
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After joining for €80 million from Bayer Leverkusen following 46 goals and 31 assists in just 150 games for his boyhood side, Havertz arrived in England with most optimism.
However, most of what's followed has been a huge disappointment. There have been huge highs, such as the aforementioned Champions League winner, the winner in the Club World Cup final and the late winner against Newcastle, but Havertz hasn't been able to deliver on a consistent basis.
A hot streak in early 2022 - where he scored five and assisted one in five games - was an encouraging sign, but the Germany international ended the campaign with just one goal in his final seven appearances.
That form has continued this season, with a guilt-edged chance missed against Tottenham and two anonymous performances against Leeds and Everton.
Across the first three games of the campaign, Havertz has taken just two shots on target, and has failed to create a big chance. The blame can't be placed entirely on him - Mason Mount and Raheem Sterling have both struggled, suggesting the system isn't working - but more is expected of a player with such high potential.
The concerning thing for Tuchel must be that Havertz's underlying numbers look promising, but he just isn't producing much on the pitch.
The German ranks in the top 10 percent of forwards in Europe's top five leagues for the following metrics over the past year: passes attempted, pass accuracy, touches in attacking penalty area, progressive passes received, blocks, and clearances.
Furthermore, his progressive carries are in the top 12 percent and his xG is in the top 25%. However, he isn't performing and is subject to going missing a lot of the time, which is something that is very concerning, and shown by the fact he won just six ground and aerial duels against Leeds.
Another worrying theme for Tuchel was that he had 33 touches against Everton and 39 against Leeds, but that number was at 57 for the draw against Tottenham. Against weaker sides, Havertz usually turns up more frequently, but that hasn't happened this campaign.
He's still only scored one Premier League goal against one of Chelsea's so-called 'big-six' rivals - a header against Liverpool last season, and so the fact he's been poor against Everton and Leeds doesn't bode well.
He needs competition
With Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner both having left the club, and Armando Broja picking up a knock, as well as not being an established Chelsea player, Havertz has a free run at the Blues starting XI.
His performances so far this season have been poor and he deserves to be dropped, but there's nobody who can replace him, meaning his form goes unpunished.
Whether Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the right man to bench Havertz and ensure he fights for his place rather than becomes complacent is unknown, but another body in attack is needed because Havertz hasn't shown enough to deserve a starting berth at current.
