Kai Havertz is much maligned among Chelsea fans, this this season proving the final straw for many of them. The German forward has played as a striker for much of the season, but had frustrated until the last few games, where some penalties and some good finishes have improved things.
In fact, if you look purely at the stats, there’s not much to complain about. FBRef have him at 14.1 expected non-penalty goals and assists for the season in a competition, miles clear of Raheem Sterling’s second plaved 9.5.
Joao Felix edges him with a slightly higher expected goal and assist rate per 90 minutes, but the Portuguese is working with a smaller sample size, and probably wouldn’t be carrying the same numbers if he had played as many games.
So while Havertz is never going to be a goal machine, there’s no denying that his recent upturn in form is forcing some of the criticism to quieten down a little.