A large section of Chelsea supporters have told Thomas Tuchel who they want to see in attack instead of Romelu Lukaku against Liverpool.
Their choice: Kai Havertz.
The 22-year-old hasn’t featured in the Premier League since the middle of November, following a spell of seven starts in eight matches.
His strong run in the side was mainly due to the absence of Lukaku, who missed well over a month of action through injury.
Now, the Belgian international might be forced to sit out the Liverpool match on Sunday for an entirely different reason.
Lukaku to be cut loose?
His revealing interview with Sky Sports Italia that was conducted a few weeks ago has come to light and it doesn’t read well for the striker.
Seemingly criticising the manager’s methods, alongside admitting the urge to return to Inter Milan, might cause Tuchel to drop the centre-forward for the weekend’s encounter at Stamford Bridge.
If that is the case, Havertz would be the most obvious replacement.
A decision that would certainly sit well with Chelsea fans.
Here’s what they had to say about the German’s inclusion from the start versus the Reds on Twitter:
Nah play Havertz CF
— 🧙♂️ (@CFCLamps_) December 31, 2021
@ChelseaFC start Kai Havertz
— KAA ⭐⭐ (CFC💙) (@officialtruekaa) December 31, 2021
Keep Romelu rolling against Liverpool
Realistically, Tuchel is unlikely to punish Lukaku at this current moment in time.
The number nine is finally scoring again after such a long period of hitting blanks.
He has two goals in his last two league outings and it would be unwise to halt his progress now.
Lukaku could well play alongside Havertz instead, with the latter moving into one of the ten roles.
Whichever personnel Tuchel falls upon, he will need as strong a line-up as possible to face Liverpool.
Winning this tie is paramount for both clubs, as they look to cling onto the coattails of Manchester City.