Chelsea suffer Kai Havertz injury blow against West Ham United
According to Evening Standard, Chelsea forward Kai Havertz had to be helped off the ground after sustaining an injury from a sliding challenge courtesy of ex-Blues ace Kurt Zouma.
Chelsea suffered a dramatic 3-2 defeat against West Ham in the Premier League. Arthur Masuaku’s winner completed the comeback for the Hammers. Liverpool took advantage of Chelsea slipping up and beat Wolves 1-0 at Molineux to leapfrog Thomas Tuchel’s side on the table.
However, the injury of Kai Havertz could have a more lasting impact on the Blues squad than today’s loss. The German international has been a key part of Tuchel’s squad ever since he took over from Frank Lampard in January.
Havertz had a chance to make the scoreline 3-1 just before halftime when he received the ball in a decisive area. However, former Chelsea defender Kurt Zouma’s impressive sliding tackle stopped the German forward’s intentions.
Both players were down after the clash. However, Zouma was able to stand up and run after some time but the former Bayer Leverkusen playmaker’s situation wasn’t promising and he needed help from the medical staff to exit the ground.
The exact nature and severity of the injury are not known. It will be more transparent in the coming days.
Kai Havertz has been an exceptional player under Thomas Tuchel. He had a significant influence on Chelsea’s success last season. Furthermore, he scored the winning goal against Manchester City that secured the coveted Champions League title.
Nonetheless, the 22-year-old player’s impact during this campaign has been more significant than the previous season, given the role he adapted to.
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The west Londoners’ two first-choice front men Romelu Lukaku and Timo Werner suffered injuries and were sidelined for several games. Without a viable alternative, the German manager opted for Kai to feature in the centre forward role. It wasn’t his natural position but he adapted pretty well to it.
Speaking after the game, Tuchel claimed that Kai was in ‘huge pain’ (h/t Mirror). We will know more about this particular situation with time and hopefully, our young attacker is back soon as we challenge for trophies on five fronts this season.