Chelsea star criticised by national media despite goalscoring international performance

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Timo Werner failed to impress the German media despite scoring the opening goal in Germany’s 2-0 win over Lichtenstein on Thursday.

It was Hansi Flick’s first game in charge as the new Germany boss, and he opted to deploy Werner as a No.9 and fellow Chelsea star Kai Havertz as a No.10.

His faith in Werner eventually paid off, as the 25-year-old broke the deadlock, converting former Chelsea academy starlet Jamal Musiala’s fine assist five minutes before half-time.

For Werner, it was a big moment. It was his first goal in 10 competitive games for both Chelsea and Germany.

German news outlet Sport1, however, was not entirely impressed.

“Like Havertz, he had a hard time against the defensive bulwark,” the media said about Werner’s performance, before pointing out the striker’s “hardly visible” second-half presence.

To be fair, Werner actually struggled to get involved in the game against Lichtenstein’s very deep defensive line.

Throughout the game, he only touched the ball 18 times. To put it into perspective, Leroy Sane had 86 touches, and even Havertz who only played for 60 minutes had 42 touches.

Werner and Sane’s inclusion in Flick’s starting line-up was a big surprise in Germany, given their relatively poor form at the club level.

Flick defended his decision, though.

“They [Werner and Sane] have already shown what quality they have,” the former Bayern Munich manager said in his post-match press conference (via DFB’s official website).

“Timo had excellent runs, always tried to break away. It was difficult to get the ball through against such a tight defence.”

Chronicle view

From Chelsea’s point of view, Werner’s ending his goal drought and Flick’s showing faith in him are positive news.

Werner fell behind in the pecking order under Flick’s predecessor Joachim Low, having made just one start in Germany’s underwhelming Euro 2020 campaign.

Similar to Thomas Tuchel, Low preferred to have Havertz in the No.9 position than Werner.

Romelu Lukaku’s arrival also means Werner could lose his regular spot at Chelsea as well.

To regain his confidence as a goalscorer, these international stages would arguably be his best chance, and he has an ideal manager to help him in Flick.