'King Kai' Havertz threatening to claim Lukaku's Carabao Cup final spot

Kai Havertz was instrumental in Chelsea winning the Club World Cup, which was paraded around Stamford Bridge ahead of kick-off in Tuesday night's Champions League last-16 clash with Lille.

Unsurprisingly, the German followed up his heroics in Abu Dhabi with another big performance, netting the opener in a 2-0 first-leg win. He really is a man for the big occasion.

However, he made an immediate impact.

He was involved right from the first whistle and had already missed a sitter when he headed home Hakim Ziyech's corner just nine minutes in.

By the 14th minute, Havertz had already surpassed Lukaku's paltry seven touches against Crystal Palace on Saturday, showing himself to be a better option than the Belgian as a link man within Thomas Tuchel's system. 

"Kai is very strong for weeks now, he really steps up," the Blues boss told reporters after the game. "His effort is immense, the work-rate is immense, the areas of the pitch he covers for us is very, very good. 

"He was decisive, created chances, was involved and was never shy of defending. We had a very aggressive high line today, with the three offensive players together. 

"The formation was selected to provide intensity, a high work-rate consistently throughout the whole match, and they all did very well in that regard."

Of course, Havertz was on the pitch at Selhurst Park and hardly stood out himself, but he played in what is an uncomfortable position for him on the left flank in order to accommodate Lukaku, who led the line. 

Given a more central role against Lille, he excelled, showing why plenty of people believe there is still much more to come from a 22-year-old that Chelsea signed for £70 million ($86m) from Bayer Leverkusen in 2020.

Indeed, there is a reason why the man who scored Chelsea's winner in last season's Champions League final is considered 'King Kai' in the eyes of many supporters.

It was a good night for all of Chelsea's starting forwards, with Christian Pulisic sealing victory in the second half with a delicate lobbed finish over the onrushing Leo Jardim after a devastating surge from N'Golo Kante. 

But it was Havertz's role that really caught the eye, with the Germany international once again revelling in the responsibility of spearheading the attack, just as he did for much of last season's Champions League triumph.

So, when you add in his late penalty winner in the Club World Cup, it's easy to understand why he's far more popular with Chelsea fans right now than Lukaku, whose unsanctioned interview with Sky Sport Italia, in which he expressed his undying love for former club Inter as well as his struggles with Tuchel's tacics, went down like a lead balloon at Stamford Bridge.

Now, whenever Chelsea's attack fares poorly in a game, it is the Blues' No.9 who cops the blame. 

After he broke the Premier League record for the fewest touches in a match away at Palace at the weekend, Tuchel opted to leave him out versus the French champions, revealing that Lukaku was tired after starting the previous 10 games. 

"The focus today was on intensity and a high-speed game. It was about hard work against the ball, off the ball and having intensive team work," Tuchel added. 

"Romelu struggled in the last few games a little bit to deliver that. That's what I meant when I felt him a bit tired both mentally and physically.

"Since the Liverpool game, he started every match and there were some extra times as well.

"Today, we went for three other players, with Kai in great shape, very confident and giving a lot of work rate in high intensive metres for the team."

When asked whether this meant Lukaku would remain on the bench for Sunday's Carabao Cup final, Tuchel replied: "The decision doesn't need to be made today but in the next four days. But [Lukaku] has every chance to play."

However, Lukaku's dismal display at Selhurst Park offered Tuchel the chance to return to the tried-and-tested style of football which proved such a success last term. 

He will know that Chelsea have averaged only 1.5 goals per game with Lukaku in the team this season, and 2.5 without him.

Furthermore, their expected goals return per game is 1.36 with Lukaku and 2 without him, illustrating that chance creation is improved when he's not in the team. 

Chelsea, broadly speaking, are keen for the transfer to work out, given they have little chance of securing anything like the same £98m ($135m) fee they paid for the 28-year-old. 

Of course, it's up to Tuchel and Lukaku's team-mates to help the struggling striker settle and not feel isolated either on the pitch or behind the scenes.

"We cannot forget Romelu is a very important player for us," Blues captain Cesar Azpilicueta said after the Lille win. "He scored two goals in the Club World Cup, one in the semi and one in the final. 

"Against Crystal Palace, our performance wasn’t the greatest but we won. Everybody wants to improve our game.

"Romelu is a very important player for us but the manager made the decision to leave him on the bench and play other players. 

"He is the first one who will want to show his qualities and I have no doubt he will be a key player for us. Romelu will show his ability right away."

After beating Lille convincingly, Tuchel must quickly turn his focus to Liverpool. 

Chelsea might go into this weekend's Wembley showdown without in-form duo Hakim Ziyech and Mateo Kovacic, both of whom came off injured on Tuesday night. 

Of course, most of the pre-match talk will centre on Tuchel's striking dilemma.

Lukaku may well have benefited from his midweek break but, right now, the safer and better option might be to pick Havertz, given King Kai's pedigree in big games - and the fact that he is more suited to Tuchel's game plan.