It’s safe to say Chelsea has found Kai Havertz’s best position

The current dilemma Chelsea faces is one of trying to fit a square peg in a round hole. The Blues happily dished out £97.5 million to bring Lukaku back to west London after his fantastic season with Inter Milan. It looked like a fantastic piece of business at the time—and despite some skepticism, I am a firm believer the Belgian will turn things around sooner or later—but now it seems to some as if Marina Granovskaia just made a club record fee-sized mistake. Lukaku hasn’t looked comfortable in Tuchel’s teams since the early days of his arrival. There has also been an injury or two sprinkled in there, as well as a bout with COVID-19 and a small “suspension.” These factors have all undoubtedly contributed to the striker’s struggles. The simple fact remains that Lukaku looks like an awkward fit in whichever formation Tuchel fields him in at the moment.

This directly impacts Havertz’s future at the club it seems. The gaffer has a few different options here. You also need to bear in mind that Lukaku is not Havertz’s only direct competition. Another reason the wunderkind has failed to see the pitch as often as expected is because of the meteoric rise of Mason Mount. There was a place in the side for both of them under Lampard as the English manager attempted to play with dual No. 8s. More recently, it’s been one or the other and Mount has made the right wing his home with his exceptional all-around play. Havertz’s direct competition in his two main positions has limited the options of his manager.

As it stands, Chelsea does not currently have the personnel required to give the 4-3-3 that Lampard tried (4-1-2-3, for all of you who love specifics) another go. Tuchel has shown a willingness to move in that direction with his recent utilization of the 4-1-4-1, but Mateo Kovacic’s role as the free-roaming midfielder who plays wherever required at certain points in time prevents that from being a surefire 4-1-2-3. It’s more like a 4-2-4 featuring an attacking diamond when Kovacic plays as a holding midfielder. The Blues need a player like Declan Rice to truly pull off a dream 4-1-2-3. This formation would allow Chelsea to play with Havertz, Lukaku and Mount at the same time in perfect harmony.

Enough about dream scenarios though.

Perhaps the only system that allows Tuchel to play all three in their best positions right now is the 3-5-2. This would allow for Havertz and Lukaku to both play centrally, where they excel, and continue to develop the solid relationship they have shown recently. Further, it sees Mount return to his natural position as a central attacking midfielder. This also keeps a midfield pivot—where players like N’Golo Kante and Jorginho thrive—in tact, which in turn helps solidify the defense.

This is just the most sensible option going forward if Tuchel decides to play Havertz more regularly on the back of his red hot form. Of course, [Alvaro Morata] could always hit the fan and given that the two sides don’t see eye-to-eye right now, there could be a split between Chelsea and Lukaku. This would be monumental seeing as the Blues just recently paid Inter nearly £100 million for the superstar No. 9. It’d require some unbelievable things to happen; such as a European club paying a majority, if not all, of that back to Chelsea. If the unimaginable was to happen though, questions do begin to arise.

Has Tuchel seen enough out of Havertz to suggest he could be the one to lead the line in years to come? That’s for the manager—and only the manager—to know right now. The signs point toward a positive response, but it’s unlikely we ever reach that point. The Blues will have to find a way for Havertz and Lukaku to co-exist as strike partners in the meantime as it’s seemingly the only way to get the best out of both men while keeping them happy long-term.

Chelsea has a solid foundation in the stars (plus Mount), it just has to spend the upcoming months plugging and playing while planning for a future with the expensive pair. If this situation is not handled with care, it could result in the Blues shipping off another world class talent in the name of an easy solution in the present, one that comes back to bite them in the future.

What do you believe Havertz’s best position is in this Chelsea team? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or on Twitter!