Kai Havertz had another big moment in Europe once again. A player of undoubted quality that has struggled for consistency ever since joining Chelsea, some of his best times in a Blues shirt have come in the Champions League, and he once again made a statement in the win against RB Salzburg.
Having been dropped against Manchester United following one of his most peripheral games in a Blues shirt, Havertz responded with a stunning strike to not only secure Graham Potter progression to the knockout stages, but also top spot in the group.
Playing in a free role against the Austrian side, the attacker moved across the pitch in order to become hard to pick up and made his opponents pay in the second half. Having tamely nodded a first half header safely to Phillip Kohn, the 23-year-old made no such mistake in the second 45.
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With his side pegged back to 1-1, Havertz found a neat pocket of space and curled a strike into the top corner off the bar. It was comparable to his strike against England at Wembley in September, and sent a reminder to everyone of the talent he possesses.
Having been in England for two years, his return of 26 goals in 107 matches hasn't yet been enough to justify the £72million paid for him. Flashes of expert skill that was on show against Salzburg are the reason that he has fans more frustrated than pleased so far though.
With his record in Germany being much more prolific, with 46 goals in 150 matches and 31 assists, links of him going back to Bundesliga appeared over the summer. His contract isn't up until 2025, but with Bayern Munich losing Robert Lewandowksi over the summer and Thomas Muller now 33-years-old, the German giants are an obvious destination should he be open to moving.
Bild reporter Christian Falk has stated that Bayern contacted Havertz's agent during the summer about a transfer but were given a firm no. As Thomas Tuchel was manager at the time and had been unable to bring the best of Havertz from several positions, Todd Boehly wasn't interested in selling his attacker.
Potter has so far gotten slightly more from him, two goals as opposed to the one he scored under Tuchel, but the return is still not enough for a player that has delivered such moments of magic during his time.
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