In a roundabout way, an article about Philippe Coutinho’s links to Chelsea opened up a whole new set of transfer buzz. According to The Athletic, Chelsea are “keen on” German playmaker Kai Havertz, at the expense of the Brazilian.
REPORT: Chelsea ‘Keen On’ Bayer Leverkusen’s Kai Havertz
Havertz Over Coutinho
Havertz, 21 in June, “is seven years younger than Coutinho and regarded as one of the finest prospects in European football” as The Athletic points out. And youth is something Blues boss Frank Lampard wants.
Havertz, like Coutinho, can play in several positions. He excels, though, as a 10 and is a great passer of the ball. The German reads the game well to find space in front of the backline and can burn defenders for pace in behind as well.
He’s also a great passer of the ball in any situation. Through balls, over the top, or under pressure, Havertz can create for his teammates with the best of them. But that doesn’t take away from his finishing in at all.
In the 2018/19 season, he racked up 17 goals in the Bundesliga and also chipped in four assists. For good measure, he bagged three of each in the Europa League that year as well.
But after attacking partner Julian Brandt departed for Borussia Dortmund in the summer of 2019, Havertz hasn’t seen the same output. In the currently paused campaign, he has only managed six goals and five assists in the league.
Worryingly, his shots per game have plummeted from 2.6 last year to 1.6, according to WhoScored. Over a 34 game season, that drops down from 88 to 54. It’s no wonder his goals have dried up when he tallied nearly 40% fewer shots.
Despite a down year when it comes to goals and assists, Havertz has actually had quite a good season for Bayer Leverkusen in total. His average game rating is up from 7.25 to 7.28. Both his dribbles per game and key passes per game are up this season as well.
Havertz has the talent to play in the Premier League and for Chelsea. However, there are a couple of issues that will certainly impede his transfer.
Road Blocks in The Way
Chelsea already have several players that have the same qualities in the same positions. Take your pick because they’re all young as well. Mason Mount, Christian Pulisic, Callum Hudson-Odoi, and the incoming Hakim Ziyech make up the log jam.
Depth is great. But depth doesn’t stay sharp wearing a substitute’s bib. And you can throw out Willian’s and Pedro’s names from the conversation because they won’t start next year in front of any of those guys or Havertz, should he come to Stamford Bridge.
Havertz, though, wouldn’t be a guaranteed starter. And with his price, just shy of €89 million according to Transfermarkt, he can’t sit on the bench. Either Chelsea don’t buy him or they kick someone to the curb, likely Christian Pulisic. He’s injury-prone, not Lampard’s guy, and not an academy product.
Chelsea may have sent scouts to check out Havertz in action. And they may well have loved him. Even though he fits the Chelsea project in many ways, too many roadblocks stand in the way of him coming to west London.
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