Tim Sherwood heaped huge praise on Chelsea’s Kai Havertz for his performance in the 2-1 victory against Dinamo Zagreb.
The 23-year-old attacker caught the eye tonight during just over an hour on the pitch after starting the Champions League group stage match.
Graham Potter watched his side come from behind in the contest, with Raheem Sterling and debutant Denis Zakaria scoring first-half goals for the hosts at Stamford Bridge.
The Blues had already secured top spot in their group before Wednesday’s game, but they wrapped it up with a strong performance that restores a bit of momentum going into Sunday’s clash against Premier League leaders Arsenal.
Kai Havertz against Dinamo Zagreb
Sky Sports pundit Sherwood was really impressed with Chelsea’s forward for his contribution against Dinamo Zagreb.
The German forward was given licence within the system to float around between a No.10 and No.9 on the pitch, featuring heavily in a lot of the team’s offensive patterns.
“Havertz has played well tonight,” Sherwood told Sky Sports (9:22pm, 2 November).
“He’s a thinking footballer and I think he likes the pace of the Champions League.”
It looks like Havertz is entering a mini purple patch of form, scoring in the previous two matches before tonight.
He didn’t get on the scoresheet in midweek against Dinamo Zagreb, but he does look like a player with some confidence right now in his own game.
It was a much-needed response and performance from Chelsea tonight.
They’ll have to be at their best levels to get a result against an impressive Arsenal outfit on the weekend, but they definitely do possess the individuals with enough quality.
Havertz, along with several of his teammates, looked on it against Dinamo Zagreb. For instance, Scott Minto hailed the performance of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang against the Croatians.
Let’s hope this is a start of another long unbeaten run under Potter.
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