With Chelsea unarguably the most active team in this summer’s transfer window and having already secured the signatures of Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech, these two signings alone gives Chelsea a serious attacking firepower going into the new season.
Werner has always been a player with a lot of promise, the just concluded Bundesliga season has seen him realise his potential and become one of the most deadly forwards in Europe’s top five leagues. A season in which he recorded his personal bests in both goals and assists, scoring 28 times and registering 8 assists – Being directly involved in a goal every 78.1 minutes of action.
Werner is a hugely versatile forward capable of operating all across the frontline and upfront in both a two man pairing and also as a lone striker. His best performances though has come from the left where he operates as an inside forward or through the middle as a pressing forward. Both positions allows Werner to play on the last line and use his tremendous pace to break in behind opposition defences.
Previously in his career, Werner was a pure counter attacking machine who thrives when space is given to him to explore his pace but struggles against teams that restricts the space and keep low blocks but under Naggelsman guidance he’s made Werner to influence these games by dropping off the line and linking with teammates to create goalscoring effects, making him more complete and intelligent in the process.
What is particularly impressive about Werner is the massive distance he covers in matches. In Leipzig last season not only did he make the most intensive runs in the Bundesliga(2,095) but he covered the most distance too(333.5km) which shows not only his aggressive style of play but his willingness to work hard for the team.
So how will he fit in at Stamford Bridge?
Last season we saw Lampard favour either a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-3-3 formation, we also saw him utilize a back three towards the tale end of the season in a 3-5-2, 3-4-3 or a 3-4-1-2, all single or double striking formations which Werner is already used to coming from Leipzig.
Logically, Werner can also easily slot into the left hand side if Frank Lampard decides to play either of Giroud or Tammy Abraham upfront or pair him together with any of them, also allowing in game tactical flexibility and giving Lampard the possibility of tweaking his system depending on the opposition.
A hugely underrated part of Werner’s game is his ability to carry balls forward before getting a dangerous shot away especially when found in a position on the left flank, something that left Chelsea with Eden Hazard – In the 2018/2019 premier league season Eden Hazard completed 8 dribbles that directly resulted in a goal more than any other player in Europe’s top five leagues(2nd=Gervinho – 7).
However from the same period till now Werner has completed 10 dribbles directly leading to a goal more than any other player across Europe’s top five leagues(2nd=Gervinho – 9) and this ability of his will be crucial in making Chelsea more unpredictable under Frank Lampard.
Furthermore, Werner’s arrival now gives Lampard the opportunity to play a pragmatic counter attacking system filled with pace, last season Chelsea only scored 9% of their premier league goals from counter attacks, an area that’ll definitely improve with Pulisic, Werner and Ziyech now in the mix, and it can even be Lampard’s go to switch to see out a game if the need be.
All in all Timo Werner is an excellent addition to Frank Lampard’s side, not only will Werner massively improve the team but his versatility will allow Lampard to be more tactical flexible and avoid potential injuries.
Okonkwo Benjamin
