Chelsea has already broken the “No.9 curse” with a £150,000 star, saying goodbye to Lukaku is not a concern
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Despite Kai Havertz, Chelsea’s striker, being in bad form, it appears that the “curse number 9” is no longer of concern to Chelsea.
Chelsea’s terrible season has a current winless streak of five games in all competitions, and it doesn’t look like it will stop any time soon. The Blues will undoubtedly lose the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 encounter against Dortmund because they are now 10 points behind the top four teams in the Premier League.
Many other explanations were given, such as how the pillars were harmed or how the coach, Graham Potter, had sufficient experience. On the other hand, one of the main problems that led to Chelsea’s collapse was the lack of a true “Number 9.” Remember that Stamford Bridge has not only recently become aware of this problem.
Kai Havertz is not a typical striker position player, despite having made the most starts for Chelsea this year. When Chelsea gets excellent scoring opportunities but fails to convert them into goals, Havertz is to blame. Both Armando Broja and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are regarded as “true strikers,” and Chelsea entered this season with both of them. Since right before the World Cup, Aubameyang has not made a single start, and Broja has been sidelined with an injury since the middle of November of the previous year.
The Blues purchased Ivory Coast striker David Datro Fofana from Molde in January. Yet, the player is only a backup at the age of 20.
Are there any great strikers that Chelsea has their sights set on acquiring during the upcoming summer transfer window, such as Victor Osimhen or Dusan Vlahovic? Although it is conceivable, little chance exists that it will actually occur. They will have Christopher Nkunku contributing to their club starting in the upcoming season.
Nkunku is a player of exceptional potential and has a prodigious ability to score goals, although his best position on the pitch is offensive midfielder. Although the French player is capable of playing higher up the field, he usually does so as an attacking player in a two-striker setup. Hence, it appears as though the Blues are unconcerned about the “number 9.”
Havertz is incredibly tall, adept at flying combat, and displays excellent technique. The German player is also incredibly skilled at passing the ball around, and he frequently enters enemy territory much into the game to assist control it. Havertz is the kind of athlete who can function in a number of attacking positions. Prior to being trusted with the duty of playing centre forward starting the previous season, Havertz was given a range of roles to play under Frank Lampard and Thomas Tuchel.
The problem is that despite having emerged as an attacking midfielder, Havertz is still being referred to as a “virtual 9” at the moment.
Many of the viewpoints presented claim that when Havertz is kicking, Chelsea’s assault is less successful. Even the worst-case scenarios frequently happen while the German player is on the field. Whether Havertz is a perpetrator or a victim at Chelsea is the crucial question that needs to be addressed.
It must be stated right away that Havertz’s problem is not his ability to finish but rather the number of opportunities he has. With at least 1,500 minutes played this season, Havertz is presently placed seventh among Premier League forwards in terms of goals scored per 90 minutes (excluding penalties). All things considered, Havertz is neither the best nor the worst thing that has ever existed.
Without a doubt, Havertz’s scoring output has decreased significantly from the three seasons before this one. Nevertheless, unless Chelsea is willing to suffer a financial hit, the German talent is unsellable for 80 million euros. If the player is on loan, Chelsea will likely be obligated to cover the entirety of their salary, as they did in the past with Romelu Lukaku.
Havertz’s contract will shortly be in its final two years, therefore Chelsea must decide what to do about him as soon as possible. Potter doesn’t currently perceive Havertz as a transfer misstep because he seems to see him as a part of the future. Even if Potter is able to convince people that his choice was the right one, it is quite unlikely that he will decide to promote Havertz to “Number 9” instead.