Kai Havertz is yet to get his first goal of the new league season, four matches in. The German has played all but 15 minutes so far but hasn't had the impact he and his manager would have hoped for ahead of tonight's (Tuesday) game with Southampton at St Mary's.
Playing alongside new signing Raheem Sterling, Havertz has a big season ahead of him after only delivering 12 goals in his first two campaigns. The 23-year-old has made a habbit of scoring important goals in knockout tournaments rather than cementing his consistency into a league season.
One of the biggest gripes that has come about his game is a slow start to seasons. His first league goal for Chelsea didn't come until his fifth match, with no more being added until April. Last season followed a similar trend, as he only scored twice before Christmas.
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With faith still being shown in Havertz, part of his struggles have been with where he has been asked to play. He has been used as a central midfielder, winger, striker and false nine. Still, it's unclear where his best position is.
Just like Timo Werner found at Chelsea, he has been unable to break through Premier League defences as simply as he would in the Bundesliga, and it's a question mark that now surrounds Tuchel's management of the attack as well as Havertz's own credentials.
Speaking to the Evening Standard, he said: “As a striker, you always have to run in behind — and I can use my ability to do that as well. Sometimes it is about milliseconds, to get the pass and to be calm in front of goal, and I can rely on my fellow players to give me these balls. We keep on working hard and I will try to score.
“It is a team sport and I am a team player. I don’t go home and think I am unhappy because I didn’t score, I am happier that we won in the end. But I do need to look at myself and maybe I need to show the desire a little bit more. I will keep on working hard and I believe it will come.”
The former Bayer Lerverkusen man has been known to be silky in possession and able to ghost through teams with his subtle movement, although this hasn't transpired with enough attacking output. Havertz played possibly his best match of the season so far against Tottenham but failed to convert a key chance when it came his way.
Other than that, he was brilliant at pressing the defence, holding the ball up against centre-backs and interchanging with Mason Mount and Raheem Sterling in important attacking areas of the pitch.
Havertz just doesn't appear to have the drive to score the goals though, and that's something Tuchel will need to work out of him. Similarly to how Eden Hazard would dribble through matches and often be a joy to watch without adding to the scoreline, Havertz needs to add the finishing touch to take his levels up a notch.
It's something that Werner couldn't do, always needing the space to run into and often not being found by his teammates when he did make the runs. Havertz is finding a similar problem, although his control and ball movement is better, which means he isn't as restricted by the lack off room in-behind Premier League defences, he just needs the service into him when direct runs are made and he doesn't always get that.
It's something that rarely comes from midfield due to the profile of player in the double-six and that Mount arguably hasn't yet mastered. This can leave Havertz isolated in places and will need to be fixed if the German Champions League winner is to become a long-term success at Stamford Bridge.
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