It’s safe to say Chelsea has found Kai Havertz’s best position
Occasionally, goals do tend to dry up. That’s why Lukaku has been so important to Chelsea thus far, regardless of how poor his form is at the moment. Lukaku showed during the FIFA Club World Cup that he is capable of scoring goals from nothing. When the Blues are struggling, they know they are still in safe hands with the Belgian up front. The confidence that trait instills is not something that cannot be defined by statistics, but it’s crucial to the success of a Premier League team. This is where Havertz’s individual numbers come into play.
The versatile forward has already played in five different positions over the last two years with his new club, according to Transfermarkt. Havertz simply hasn’t looked comfortable—nor has he played enough matches—as a winger (on either side) or a central midfielder. His two most productive positions are as a center forward/second striker and an attacking midfielder. This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone either. Havertz has appeared up top in 29 games, where he has notched eight goals and added three assists. During the 2021/22 season alone, he has six goals plus assists in 14 games as a striker.
Overall, this is fewer goal contributions than in attacking midfield (35 games, seven goals and eight assists) during his time in SW6. Neither return is particularly good either. As with a lot of other assessments in this article though, the signs of a solid foundation are there with Havertz.
It’s important to note that Tuchel’s favorite system, the 3-4-3, does not utilize traditional No. 10s. That leaves the managerial staff no choice but to play Havertz as a striker or winger. His individual stats may suffer a little bit when he lines up in the most advanced role in the team, but those around him tend to thrive. On the flip side, he is almost rendered completely useless as a winger as the fit is awkward to anyone with eyes. Coming full circle, Havertz does not have a fully developed clutch gene quite yet as a No. 9—few strikers at his age do though. Lukaku didn’t, nor did Robert Lewandowski; the duo developed it over time. Erling Haaland is the gold standard for modern day strikers, that doesn’t mean he isn’t a rarity, or even an anomaly, in this sense.
It takes time and practice to become a world class center forward, it’s not something one can just pick up one day and become an expert in by the next morning. Havertz needs time to develop. How he will get those minutes is an entirely different topic altogether.