- 19 hours ago
Havertz taking responsibility at Chelsea, says Tuchel
Paul Macdonald
- Updated: 23 May 2023 08:42 CDT
- 5 min read
Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel has lauded Kai Havertz for taking “responsibility” as he helped the Blues to a 2-0 win over Everton on Monday night.
The Germany international has struggled to settle in English football since his £75million move from Bayer Leverkusen.
But he saw a goal disallowed by VAR for handball, while a Ben Godfrey own goal and a Jorginho penalty were enough to maintain Chelsea’s position in the top four.
Tuchel was full of praise for the 21-year-old and says it is normal for players to take time adapting to a new style and league.
“I’m very happy with his performance; there’s no doubt about his quality, his talent and also not about his character,” said Tuchel.
“He needs to adapt to the Premier League, he needs to a club where you play to win every game, where the highest standards are normal.
“That’s a normal process also for him to adapt to this mentality. He showed up between the lines and used his potential to accelerate our game and to increase the touches in the box – and to be responsible for assists and through-balls, and also to take the responsibility to finish himself. And from here, on we go.”
With just one goal in 20 Premier League games this season, Havertz will hope to end the campaign strongly ahead of the European Championships in the summer, Joachim Low’s last as Germany boss.
