Recently, Chelsea star Kay Havertz was interviewed by Sky Sports. In this interview, Havertz talks about the team's recent games, his own form this season, his role in the team and his confidence in the future.
Chelsea's 2-1 win over Leicester City in front of 10,000 returning home fans at Stamford Bridge in the early hours of Wednesday morning set the stage for the final round of away games against Aston Villa. If they win the final round, Chelsea will secure a third-place position in the league and secure a Champions League spot next season. Next weekend, Chelsea will face Manchester City in the Champions League final, in addition to a crucial league battle. Every 90 minutes of every game right now is crucial for the team.
"Every game we play is like a final," Kay Havertz said in an interview, "we're going to play like we're going to be in a final, we're going to give everything." Winning Leicester City in the last round of the league was the result we wanted. It was a very important victory for us. We showed great team spirit and gave a great game and I'm so glad the fans are back. The atmosphere at home is very good, but the work is not over and we have to refuel again on Sunday. ”
"After Sunday, we were able to fully focus on the Champions League final. But now we're just thinking about Sunday's game. ”
Havertz failed to play against Leicester due to hamstring problems, but after Friday morning's training he felt good and confident of returning to the pitch at Villa Park.
Commenting on the importance of the top four pairs of players, Havertz said:
"It's the most important thing for us and coming to Chelsea is of course to win the trophy. We know we didn't show our best in the first half of the season and now we're in a race for four. This season's league title is gone. We want to play in the Champions League next year, there's no doubt about it. Each of our players has the ability to play in the Champions League. We will give our all and hopefully we can finally do it and play the Champions League next year. ”
The high-pressure state has made Chelsea's players more united. When it comes to his form this season, the 21-year-old Hasrtz is more mature: "The most important thing now is to play the final battle of the season. You have to put your ego aside and give your efforts for the whole team. ”
That attitude will please Tuchel, but manager Tuchel also wants to see the talented player recover before the last two games and reach his best next season.
Looking back on his initial arrival in England, Havertz says the COVID-19 pandemic has made his initial life at Chelsea very difficult. But with the support of German national team-mate Werner, who signed with him at the same time in the summer, he has overcome these challenges and has slowly found his place in the Premier League.
"It's a big change for me, it's really, really hard because sometimes there's a game every three days and to be honest, it's a lot more intense here than it was in Germany. Still it always felt great to have Timo by my side and we could chat. We've all been in very tough situations before and he's had bad luck this season. But I think we've played really well in the last two months and hopefully we can continue to be that way. ”
"When you come to London, you'll be looking forward to life here, but it's not been possible in the last few months. We had to stay at home and there were a lot of other demands, so we didn't appreciate the charm of the city yet, but just cared about football. Hopefully, things will change a bit next season and allow us to experience more. ”
"I know it's been a tough season for me, it's definitely not my best. I knew before I came that it would take a few months to adjust to the Premier League and life in this country. But in the last two or three months, I've felt very confident. I played well, scored some goals and had some assists, and that's what I wanted to do. ”
"Although it wasn't the best season, I always looked forward step by step and tried to help the team as much as I could. I know I can do better and I hope to be even better next season. ”
Havertz was used in various positions in the first half of the season, which was probably a major obstacle on his way to adapting to the Premier League. In the 2020/21 season, Havertz played a total of 11 different roles on the field. But in the pseudo-No. 9 position that Tuchel has chosen for him, he has shown his ability.
"I'm not the same as the big centre-forwards who are strong, I play a little bit differently, so I have a lot of great frontcourt players around me and it's always easy to play with them. I liked the pseudo-number 9 and played very comfortably in this position. I often go into space to pick up the ball and also like to be active close to the goal, so overall I think this position is a good fit for me. ”
Team-mate Mateo Kovacic called Havertz the "future of the club". The pseudo-9 role and how to get players around him could be a key template for chelsea, Tuchel and Havertz in the future. But for now, the long-term plan is set aside, and as Havertz says, the focus now is on their Sunday game at Villa Park.
(Editor: Yao Fan)