After James opened the scoring, Havertz netted twice and Christian Pulisic sealed the victory on Saturday.
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On Saturday, Chelsea needed a response against Burnley after a difficult first half. They got the much-needed reaction with Reece James scoring early in the second period to help the Blues register an important Premier League win. The English full-back was dearly missed during his recent injury concerns but his return will now be a major plus for Thomas Tuchel’s side. Teammate Kai Havertz, who scored a double on Saturday, heaped praise on the English full-back for his contribution at Turf Moor. After James opened the scoring, Havertz netted twice and Christian Pulisic sealed the victory.
“I’m very pleased,” said Havertz, as per their club’s website. “The result is very good for us. I think we needed these goals and also to play with zero goals for them. It was difficult, especially the first half. It was important for us that we scored very early in the second half. I think overall it was a good performance from us. We switched a little bit our formation and switched some positions on the field in the second half, I think that helped us. Reece’s goal was brilliant and it helped us a lot to get an early goal and we are pleased about this result.”
It was a more than welcome return to Chelsea‘s starting line-up for James, who did not start a game before this since the 1-1 draw with Brighton in December owing to injury. Besides scoring the opener, James set up Havertz’s second in Burnley.
“We’re very happy,” added the German. “I think he’s a special player for us, a very important player for us. He’s a full-back but he scores goals, he assists goals, and I think that’s very important for us. He’s a great character and a great player.”
READ MORE – Havertz nets double as the Blues win 4-0
Havertz was also happy with his contribution from the day, as the 22-year-old had not scored in the Premier League since the corresponding fixture against Burnley at Stamford Bridge in November.
“It’s always very difficult when you don’t score but, of course, these goals help and I’m happy about this. Sometimes you have to wait a little bit to get some more goals. I always want more and more. Sometimes it’s hard but of course I’m happy today to score two goals,” he explained.
Havertz also feels that the team is on a good run and wants to continue that form. “The confidence is there. I think after the loss in the Carabao Cup final it was a little bit hard to come back, but we showed great character in the FA Cup game,” he explained.
“I think the last few weeks, also the last few months, were good from us. The first six months of the season were kind of a little bit hard, especially the winter time when we had a lot of injured players. So I think we are on a good run again but we want to continue that and keep on going.”
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