Werner vs Havertz: Did Chelsea sell the wrong German?

Cameron Smith

• Updated: 23 May 2023 09:09 CDT
• 5 min read

After a promising first season under Frank Lampard, and the lifting of their transfer ban, Chelsea simply attacked the market in 2020.

While most clubs were struggling to deal with the financial effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, the West London club seemed to be better off than ever, splashing €250 million to bring the likes of Hakim Ziyech, Ben Chilwell, Edouard Mendy and, of course, both Timo Werner and Kai Havertz to the club.

The latter two provided the most excitement, with the pair both enjoying spectacular campaigns in the Bundesliga before departing for Stamford Bridge.

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However, despite the expectation that arrived with them, both Werner and Havertz failed to live up the hype. The former looked devoid of any confidence after several high-profile misses, while the latter remains at the club, but floats through games largely anonymous throughout.

Neither transfer worked out, but Chelsea's decision to sell Werner and keep Havertz has been a topic of conversation since last summer.

The RB Leipzig forward's days at Stamford Bridge looked numbered from the day Romelu Lukaku walked through the door in 2021. The Belgian was signed for a then club record €115m and it seemed to signal the end of Werner's Chelsea career just one year after it had begun.

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Of course, Lukaku soon lost his place in the Blues starting XI after his infamous interview with Sky Italia, but Thomas Tuchel opted for Havertz through the middle, rather than his fellow countryman Werner.

That decision ultimately spelled the end of Werner's time at Chelsea, but did the Blues make the wrong choice to ditch Werner and keep faith with Havertz?

Havertz at Chelsea

Havertz was a wonderkid in Germany before he left to join Chelsea, and was widely seen as the next best talent to be produced by the nation. It's why Chelsea rushed to sign him in 2020 rather than wait and see how he developed.

In hindsight, that was a mid-judged call. Havertz may have scored the winning goal in the 2021 Champions League final, but he's largely failed to impress in West London.

The Germany international has received a lot of criticism for how he often cruises through games without much impact, and while he has scored clutch goals for Chelsea, they've mostly been against inferior opposition.

Havertz has enjoyed purple patches of form during his Chelsea career, but he's never quite managed to translate those moments of brilliance into consistent performance.

Just as worrying as that is the fact that his goal against Liverpool at the start of the 2021/22 season is his only goal against one of the 'top six' in the Premier League.

In the top flight, Havertz has netted three times against Burnley, twice against Southampton, Fulham and Crystal Palace, and just once against Liverpool, West Ham, Brighton, Wolves, Norwich, Newcastle, Watford and Bournemouth.

He's started 19 Premier League games this season, yet he's produced a goal or an assist in just four of those starts. The other 15 occasions have been fruitless.

Havertz is simply too inconsistent to be a regular at Chelsea. But, would Werner be doing any better in his place?

Werner at Chelsea

After a promising start, Werner quickly tailed off at Stamford Bridge, with the German unable to re-find his confidence after consistent glaring misses. One open-goal sitter against Leeds United will stick long in the memories of Blues fans.

However, Chelsea supporters backed Werner throughout his time at the club. He always gave 100% effort and things always seemed to happen thanks to him, even if he wasn't clinical enough.

His pace was a threat to any backline and his solo goal against Real Madrid away at the Santiago Bernabeu last season was sublime.

Werner's return to the Bundesliga has not been as fruitful as his final year before joining Chelsea, but he still has 17 goals and assists in 1,744 minutes of action across all competitions this season. That works out at a goal contribution every 103 minutes. He contributed a goal or an assist every 137 minutes at Chelsea.

By comparison, Havertz is at rate of 301 minutes per goal or assist this campaign, or 179 minutes per goal or assist across his entire Chelsea career.

The numbers show that Werner clearly provided more output at Chelsea, while his pace and directness added great value to their attack. He may not have been perfect, but selling Werner in favour of Havertz looks to have been the wrong decision.