Lampard backs Havertz after quiet Chelsea debut

Frank Lampard has backed Kai Havertz after the German’s somewhat quiet Chelsea debut.

Big things are expected of the winger following his big-money move from Bayer Leverkusen.

He showed glimpses of his obvious talent in the 3-1 win at Brighton but there were no stand-out moments before Havertz was substituted late on.

But boss Lampard said: “I liked him. It’s not a game that you’d come away and go, “here are 10 vintage moments’ but I thought there were moments of real quality and calmness.

“It’s a big ask. There’s a lot on his shoulders for the signing that he was, the fact that he’s young and coming from a different league.

“He plays the game at such a pace in terms of his quality and how he receives the ball and I thought we saw a few glimpses of that.

“We also saw him sprint back 80 yards to make a defensive interception having given the ball away, so everything I’ve seen about him in terms of his character is spot-on and his quality is going to come through.

“I saw glimpses and we’re going to see a lot more. He’s a hugely talented young player.”

Timo Werner, on the other hand, made a big impact on his Chelsea debut.

Werner was lively up front throughout and won the penalty which led to Jorginho opening the scoring midway through the first half.

“We showed a lot of good stuff,” said Lampard.

“It wasn’t where we want to be in the end – that will take a bit of time.

“The first game of the season is about getting a win.”