How Kai Havertz' versatility can elevate Chelsea to the next level

As if Chelsea fans weren't excited enough about the prospect of seeing new recruits Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner in blue next season, news broke this week confirming that Kai Havertz was set to agree terms at Stamford Bridge.

The young German - along with Werner - is one of the hottest properties in the Bundesliga and enjoyed a scintillating second half of the season gone by after somewhat of an underwhelming Hinrunde. The winterpause has proven to be a welcome respite for the Bayer Leverkusen star in back-to-back seasons, but if the 21-year-old can transfer his form from the New Year over the course of a campaign, Chelsea will have bagged themselves a bonafide superstar.

Havertz's record before the usual Christmas break across the last two Bundesliga seasons reads 31 appearances, 8 goals and a WhoScored.com rating of 6.99. After said break in that time, those numbers rocket to 21 goals in 33 ruckrunde appearances and an outstanding average rating of 7.49. Based on this season alone, Havertz's league rating of 7.57 since the turn of the year ranks among the top 20 players across Europe's top five leagues.

His composure, both in possession and in front of goal, is what makes Havertz such a special talent. However, besides the ice in his veins, the Blues will perhaps benefit most from the versatility that the Germany international will provide to the team. Capable of playing as an 8 in a midfield three, at it's peak in a 10 or even latterly as a number 9, many will feel that Havertz has a central role to play at Stamford Bridge from a very literal sense.

I recently tweeted a lineup of how Chelsea's front six could look next season (below), with could being the operative word. Said tweet had Havertz on the right of a front three, with Ziyech in the midfield three. It was met with many understandable responses  that the two should be switched. Based on number of starts alone in said positions, that would certainly look like the logical thing to do. However, there was a reason for that set-up, which I will try to explain here...

Ziyech-Kante-Kovacic
Havertz-Werner-Pulisic

Chelsea will be a madness next season

— Martin Laurence (@martinlaurence7) July 20, 2020

While the youngster can certainly operate from a central midfield position, there is little doubt that you get more from Havertz the higher up the pitch that he operates. He links play exceptionally well and his ability to retain possession - as well as picking up goalscoring positons - is relatively uneffected when being moved into a more advanced position, despite tending to be afforded less space in such areas.

He has excelled from an inside forward position on the right of a front three and when deployed from the right flank in general has enjoyed a greater productivity in front of goal. Indeed, since breaking into the B04 side as a teenager, Havertz has started 28 matches across league and European competition from the right side of the pitch. In that time he has scored 15 goals at rate of one every 163.7 minutes and boasts figures of 2.3 shots, 1.8 key passes and 1.8 dribbles per 90 minutes, as well as pass accuracy  of 85.6 per cent.

From significantly more appearances starting from a central position (81) - including centre-forward - Havertz has scored 26 goals at a rate of one every 263.3 minutes. Moreover, his averages for shots (2.2), key passes (1.4) and dribbles (1.4) per 90 are all down, along with a more modest pass accuracy of 82.7 per cent. As such, an outstanding WhoScored.com rating of 7.46 when playing from the right drops to a still impressive but notably inferior 7.20 from the middle of the pitch.

It certainly remains the case that Frank Lampard may look to utilise his newest recruit from a more familiar central position, but the ability to switch between Havertz and fellow newcomer Ziyec dependent on the opponent will be a fantastic option. The latter operated from the right for much of the suspended 2019/20 Eredivisie campaign but shone in a midfield three at Ajax previous to that in the 2017/18 season in particular, and is certainly more gifted from a creative point of view.

Where the Moroccan is some way short of his potential new teammate is his finishing. Ziyech shoots for fun, much like Manchester United star Bruno Fernandes, and as such his conversion rate is often masked by goal tallies that appear impressive at first sight but require context. He's more capable of the spectacular than Havertz but doesn't boast the German's timing and positional sense in the opposition box.

Wherever he starts for Chelsea, getting Havertz as close to the opposition goal as possible will be key. Some may even suggest that the Leverkusen graduate could lead the line with compatriot Timo Werner operating from the left. That is yet another option, though it should be said the former's deployment as a central striker post-lockdown in the Bundesliga was more of a temporary solution - albiet an extremely successful one - to the absence of first choice forward Kevin Volland.

 As much as acquiring one of Europe's brightest young talents should excite Blues fans from an individual perspective, the tactical options that he will bring to Chelsea as a whole represent what may help elevate the club to the next level.