Published: September 30, 2021 8:55 pm
Last Updated: September 30, 2021 9:00 pm
The post-match analysis of Chelsea’s disappointing defeat at the hands of Juventus on Wednesday night saw Kai Havertz singled out for particularly heavy criticism.
Chiesa makes the difference
Thomas Tuchel’s men were of course back in action 24 hours ago.
After slipping to a first defeat of the domestic campaign at the hands of Manchester City, the Blues made the trip to Turin to face Juventus, hoping to avoid a similar fate on the continent.
When all was said and done at the Allianz Stadium, though, a 2nd-straight defeat across all competitions is precisely what was forthcoming.
A solitary goal proved all that was required to guide Juve to an early advantage atop the Group H table, as the ever-dangerous Federico Chiesa took namesake Federico Bernardeschi’s defence-splitting pass in his stride to lash home beyond Edouard Mendy:
WOOOOOW! 😱
Just 🔟 seconds after the restart Juventus have taken the lead!
Federico Chiesa slams the ball home. An emphatic finish! 💥 pic.twitter.com/TkGaqNQwD9
— Football on BT Sport (@btsportfootball) September 29, 2021
‘Lazy and laboured’
In turn, on the back of not only their 2nd successive loss, but also shutout in front of goal, it subsequently came as little surprise to see a number of Chelsea’s stars singled out for criticism on Wednesday night.
The likes of Romelu Lukaku and Hakim Ziyech disappointed across the 90 minutes, struggling to make any sort of telling impact up against a stout Juventus backline.
Perhaps the subject of more widespread condemnation than any other Blues star, though, was Kai Havertz.
A less than impressive opening to the campaign for Chelsea’s big-money attacker continued in Turin, as Havertz again failed to convince Thomas Tuchel of his calibre as an unquestionable starter.
Chelsea’s Kai Havertz and Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel after the Premier League match at Stamford Bridge, London. Picture date: Monday March 8, 2021. (Photo by Glyn Kirk/PA Images via Getty Images)
It was the German international’s mannerisms, more so than his efforts on the ball, though, which in fact came to the fore during the post-match analysis session on BT Sport.
When drawn on the latest showing put forth by Havertz, ex-Tottenham striker Peter Crouch was quick to draw comparisons between the 22-year-old and Mesut Ozil, of course also the cause of countless headaches across his own stretch in the English capital over the course of the last decade:
‘I thought Ziyech and Havertz were very disappointing. I think Havertz reminds me of Ozil.’
‘He does things where it comes easy to him and he looks technically brilliant,’ Crouch continued.
But he can also look lazy and laboured at times and he can frustrate you and I thought tonight they were frustrating.’
Kai Havertz compared to Mesut Ozil after “looking lazy” in Champions Leaguehttps://t.co/LXMBN5eZh7 pic.twitter.com/cpw26zzxMg
— Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) September 30, 2021
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2021-09-29T19:05:19Z
Premier League table
| # | Team | MP | D | P |
| 1 | Liverpool FC | 6 | 11 | 14 |
| 2 | Manchester City | 6 | 11 | 13 |
| 3 | Chelsea FC | 6 | 10 | 13 |
| 4 | Manchester United | 6 | 8 | 13 |
| 5 | Everton FC | 6 | 5 | 13 |
| 6 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 6 | 3 | 13 |
| 7 | West Ham United | 6 | 5 | 11 |
| 8 | Aston Villa | 6 | 2 | 10 |
| 9 | Brentford FC | 6 | 3 | 9 |
| 10 | Arsenal FC | 6 | -5 | 9 |
| 11 | Tottenham Hotspur | 6 | -5 | 9 |
| 12 | Watford FC | 6 | -2 | 7 |
| 13 | Leicester City | 6 | -3 | 7 |
| 14 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 6 | -2 | 6 |
| 15 | Crystal Palace | 6 | -3 | 6 |
| 16 | Southampton FC | 6 | -3 | 4 |
| 17 | Newcastle United | 6 | -7 | 3 |
| 18 | Leeds United | 6 | -8 | 3 |
| 19 | Burnley FC | 6 | -6 | 2 |
| 20 | Norwich City | 6 | -14 | 0 |
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 5 |
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 5 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 5 |
| Maupay, Neal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 4 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 4 |
| Sarr, Ismaila | Watford FC | 4 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 3 |
| Gray, Demarai | Everton FC | 3 |
| Ronaldo, Cristiano | Manchester United | 3 |
| Lukaku, Romelu | Chelsea FC | 3 |
| Son, Heung Min | Tottenham Hotspur | 3 |
| Mane, Sadio | Liverpool FC | 3 |
| Calvert-Lewin, Dominic | Everton FC | 3 |
| Jota, Diogo | Liverpool FC | 3 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 3 |
| Greenwood, Mason | Manchester United | 3 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 2 |
| Saint-Maximin, Allan | Newcastle United | 2 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 2 |
| Townsend, Andros | Everton FC | 2 |
| Player | Team | Red Cards | Yellow Cards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 0 | 3 |
| Dennis, Emmanuel | Watford FC | 0 | 3 |
| Cooper, Liam | Leeds United | 0 | 3 |
| Etebo, Oghenekaro | Watford FC | 0 | 3 |
| Skipp, Oliver | Tottenham Hotspur | 0 | 3 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 0 | 1 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 0 | 2 |
| Fernandes, Bruno | Manchester United | 0 | 2 |
| Raphinha | Leeds United | 0 | 2 |
| Gallagher, Conor | Crystal Palace | 0 | 2 |
| Alonso, Marcos | Chelsea FC | 0 | 2 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 0 | 2 |
| Richarlison | Everton FC | 0 | 2 |
| Ritchie, Matt | Newcastle United | 0 | 2 |
| Westwood, Ashley | Burnley FC | 0 | 2 |
| Gudmundsson, Johann | Burnley FC | 0 | 2 |
| Duffy, Shane | Brighton & Hove Albion | 0 | 2 |
| Norgaard, Christian | Brentford FC | 0 | 2 |
| Rudiger, Antonio | Chelsea FC | 0 | 2 |
| Tarkowski, James | Burnley FC | 0 | 2 |
| Player | Team | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| Pogba, Paul | Manchester United | 7 |
| Antonio, Michail | West Ham United | 3 |
| Doucoure, Abdoulaye | Everton FC | 3 |
| Saint-Maximin, Allan | Newcastle United | 3 |
| Jesus, Gabriel | Manchester City | 3 |
| Kovacic, Mateo | Chelsea FC | 3 |
| Salah, Mohamed | Liverpool FC | 2 |
| Benrahma, Said | West Ham United | 2 |
| Townsend, Andros | Everton FC | 2 |
| Ings, Danny | Aston Villa | 2 |
| Toney, Ivan | Brentford FC | 2 |
| Bamford, Patrick | Leeds United | 2 |
| James, Reece | Chelsea FC | 2 |
| Gross, Pascal | Brighton & Hove Albion | 2 |
| King, Joshua | Watford FC | 2 |
| Pereira, Ricardo | Leicester City | 2 |
| Alexander-Arnold, Trent | Liverpool FC | 2 |
| Rice, Declan | West Ham United | 2 |
| Luiz, Douglas | Aston Villa | 2 |
| Vardy, Jamie | Leicester City | 1 |
