Cavani to quit
Kai aims to silence the doubters for good HEAD INJURY ‘SHAMBLES’
KAI HAVERTZ says it is time to deliver for Chelsea and silence the doubters who still question his ability.
Havertz forced Ben Godfrey into an own goal and won a penalty for Jorginho to score in Monday night’s 2-0 win over Everton.
But the £71m signing from Bayer Leverkusen insists it is just the start after a poor debut season at Stamford Bridge.
Havertz said: “It wasn’t easy to come here. Everything was new. Now it’s time to perform. I know that.
“I know there are many, many people who have doubts about me. I just try to keep working. A performance like this will give me lots of confidence. I hope I can keep on going like this.”
Signed as one of European football’s hottest properties in September, Havertz struggled to adapt to the Premier League.
He has only scored once in the top flight this season, back in October, and has largely played second fiddle to Mason Mount.
A bout of Covid in November and a muscle injury in February did not help his progress, but the 21-year-old Germany star is determined to prove his worth.
He said: “It was good for me against Everton and I gave my best. The first seven months were not easy, but you have to keep working and I did that.
“I’m very happy but of course it was my first match after injury. I think it was a good the long-term affects of heading the ball. Many were “terrified” about how it would impact later life.
Professor Willie Stewart told Parliament’s Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee on the balance of probabilities, head impacts were leading to long-lasting brain injuries in athletes across a range of sports.
Trials of permanent concussion substitutes are taking place, including in the Premier League and the FA Cup. But Stewart criticised football, saying temporary subs should be allowed so head injuries can be
■ performance from me, but you cannot say this after one performance.
“You have to be strong in the next few matches as well and that’s my goal. I will try to improve, to give my best in the next few weeks.
“I played like a ‘false nine,’ I had the freedom to go everywhere I wanted to go and I think that’s good for me. I like to have freedom on the pitch.”
Chelsea climbed into the top four ahead of Saturday’s trip to Leeds and are unbeaten in 11 games in all competitions under Thomas Tuchel.
Havertz said: “We can do a lot better. Our goal is the Champions League and there will be some tough matches coming in the next few months.
“But we have to keep on working in every training session. I think 11 games without a loss is very strong, but we can keep on going.” examined properly. He said: “What football has introduced is a shambles in 2021. Dreadful.
“Football has a habit, whenever it is forced to develop, of going out on their own and trying to develop something unique to everybody else as if the problem never occurred before.”
He said that “unquestionably” it would be better to have temporary subs, adding: “Rugby has made great developments in understanding how you can assess and identify players with brain injury on the field, and that should be the model and benchmark. “They shouldn’t be starting with a blank page and drawing up a protocol, they should just be saying, ‘How do we make that happen in football?’” Ex-manchester United and Scotland defender Mcqueen is the latest former footballer to be struck with dementia. The 68-year-old was diagnosed with the brain condition in January.
His TV presenter daughter Hayley (left) revealed her father would often ask: ‘When is someone going to fix my head?’
She added: “Sport and football, you enter into it thinking it’s going to mentally and physically better you, prolong your life.
“You don’t think at 60 years old you’re going to have brain damage from something that you love.”
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■ deal in October after leaving Paris St-germain on a free transfer.
But the 34-year-old has made just nine league starts this season and was left out of the squad altogether for last Sunday’s 2-0 derby win at rivals Manchester City.
Boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been keen for Cavani to trigger the 12-month option in his deal and remain at United next season.
But in a clear dig at the club, Cavani senior said the former Napoli ace wanted to “fight for something important”.
And he revealed he had been left upset by the FA’S decision to sanction him over an innocent message on social media that turned into a race row.
He said: “My son does not feel comfortable in England and wants to be close to the family again. Edinson is going to end up playing in South America.
“I want Edinson to play in a team that fights for something important.
“Edinson had many conversations with Boca vice-president Juan Roman Riquelme and he would like to play for Boca.
“He was always seduced by the idea of playing in Boca. By the middle of the year he will return to South America.”