"They are always the worst" - Kai Havertz admits fear of becoming a 'meme' moments before Chelsea's Champions League winning goal
Chelsea's Champions League final hero Kai Havertz has admitted to being extremely nervous when he had an open goal in front of him in the showpiece match against Manchester City.
Speaking on Chelsea's official website, Havertz said he was under pressure to score because if he had missed the chance, he would have become an instant internet meme.
When asked about the nerves, Kai Havertz said:
"Yeah, 100 per cent. These moments, they are always the worst, because you think if I miss this one then of course you are on YouTube, on Instagram and in every meme, so I was just thinking: ‘Please, I have to score now'. Then, of course, it happened and then these are the best moments in football.”
Chelsea and Manchester City met in a second all-English Champions League final in three years last season. The Blues managed to secure a narrow 1-0 win over Pep Guardiola's side thanks to a first-half goal from Kai Havertz.
Up until the Champions League final, Havertz did not have the best debut season with Chelsea following his €80 million move from Bundesliga outfit Bayer Leverkusen.
The 22-year-old attacking midfielder scored just nine goals last season. Luckily for Chelsea, though, one of them was in the Champions League final.
Kai Havertz was scared of becoming a meme 😂
The Chelsea man reveals what he was thinking when an open goal presented itself in the Champions League Final... 😅
#OptusSport https://t.co/uZYTtLjq00
Kai Havertz says he is enjoying playing in an advanced role for Chelsea
Kai Havertz said he is enjoying playing in an advanced role for Chelsea this season. The German international has admitted that advanced positions are his favorite and enjoys playing with an incredibly talented group of forwards.
"We have a lot of offensive players and sometimes we also switch the system. Sometimes I play as a number 10, sometimes as a number nine. I like the position I’m playing in this system very much and I’m enjoying it.
"It’s my favourite position, somewhere up front, and it’s very nice also to play these positions with these good players here."
The young attacker also credited Romelu Lukaku for helping the rest of the Chelsea forwards flourish.
"Romelu’s now maybe the point every defender is looking to. Sometimes two or three defenders are just on him, so it gives us a lot more space around him.
"He’s now had a few games here, so also it’s getting better when you are used to playing with him. Of course, he’s a brilliant striker, and I think in the last few matches he showed this very much."
Kai Havertz has opened up on the differing roles he's played in the Chelsea attack this season following Romelu Lukaku's signing | @AdamNewson
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