Werner will need time to show his best qualities at Chelsea, says former RB Leipzig team-mate Poulsen

Timo Werner should be given time before being expected to show his best form at Chelsea, according to his former RB Leipzig colleague Yussuf Poulsen.

Werner completed a £47.5 million ($59m) switch to the Blues in June, electing to make the transfer before the German club’s Champions League tilt in Lisbon.

He has been working with Frank Lampard’s side for a number of weeks, but the Denmark international says that it will take longer for him to express his true potential on the field.

“I think Timo will be a great striker in the Premier League over the next few years,” Poulsen said in an interview with the Sport-Informations-Dienst (SID).

“Of course, he has to get to know his team-mates and the league first; you can’t show all your qualities right away. But that will come in time.”

The 24-year-old is coming off the back of a career-best season in the Bundesliga, in which he helped RB Leipzig finish third in the standings. He netted 28 goals in 34 top-flight outings and chipped in with a further eight assists.

He also showed quality in the Champions League by scoring four times in eight matches, helping the East German side to the quarter-finals of the competition, in which they will take on Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid in Lisbon, with the winner to play either Paris Saint-Germain or Atalanta in the semi-finals.

Poulsen is expected to be a key player for Leipzig in those fixtures, and the Denmark international is certainly not considering a switch away at the moment.

“At some point I will definitely try something different, but I'm only 26 years old and at the moment I'm very happy in Leipzig,” he explained.

“If I had planned my career 10 years ago, I would certainly not have earmarked seven years in Leipzig, but I’ve been here that long now. When I signed, I hadn’t even heard of Leipzig!”

Indeed, he is targeting European glory.

“Once you’re there, you have the firm desire to go all the way to the final and win the title,” he said of the Champions League Final 8 mini-tournament.

“Sure, there are teams with a better chance on paper, but in football there are always surprises.”