Chelsea forward Kai Havertz has opened up about the difficulties he has faced this season, both on and off the pitch, amid heavy criticism for his lack of goals. However, his fortunes began to change last week after scoring a decisive goal against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League, followed by another strike against Leicester City on Saturday.

The German international had been made a scapegoat for his team’s struggles, with just one goal to his name in 35 appearances this season. However, after securing three straight wins for the first time since mid-October, Havertz believes this could be the start of a more prolonged period of success for the expensively-assembled squad.

Speaking about the pressures of football, Havertz said, “Football is our life. If you lose a game, of course, you don’t have an easy life as well. I think everyone at home, especially my girlfriend, has had some tough weeks as well in the last weeks and months. I think she is happy now again and so am I.”

He also spoke about the adaptation period needed for the team to gel and find success, adding, “We knew it was going to take some time to adapt for everyone. So maybe, you could see that we are still not finished. It will always take time to develop. We can develop a lot but we showed another good performance (at Leicester) and we can be happy.”

Despite the difficulties he has faced this season, Havertz remains optimistic about the future of the team, saying, “Of course, to win three games in a row is important for us because we had a tough time before that. We knew we would bounce back. We still have a game to play (at home to Everton) before the (international break for the) national team. We have to keep our focus high and win the next game as well.”

Signed from Bayer Leverkusen for around £72million in September 2020, Havertz’s finest moment came in the Champions League final the following spring, where he scored the winning goal against Manchester City. However, his career has since stagnated under three different management regimes.

After admitting the pressures of a lack of good fortune on the pitch negatively affected both his personal life and relationships with loved ones, Havertz will be hoping to build on his recent success and help Chelsea climb the Premier League table.