{"id":1209729,"date":"2021-06-22T17:24:19","date_gmt":"2021-06-22T16:24:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/?p=1209729"},"modified":"2022-09-19T12:57:29","modified_gmt":"2022-09-19T11:57:29","slug":"kai-havertz-lothar-matthaus-zinedine-zidane-comparison","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.squawka.com\/en\/news\/kai-havertz-lothar-matthaus-zinedine-zidane-comparison\/","title":{"rendered":"Lothar Matthaus: Kai Havertz reminds me of Zinedine Zidane in terms of skill and technique"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lothar Matthaus has likened the languid yet elegant playing style of Kai Havertz to Zinedine Zidane.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Havertz, 22, took a while to acclimatise to the demands of Premier League football following his lucrative switch from Bayer Leverkusen to Chelsea, but he really came to the fore following the appointment of compatriot Thomas Tuchel, netting the winner in the Champions League final.<\/p>\n

The German midfielder has since taken that form into Euro 2020, playing a key role in his nation’s recent 4-2 win over Portugal, in which he scored the third goal.<\/p>\n

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Such form has not gone unnoticed, with former Germany international Matthaus comparing Havertz to World Cup winner Zidane.<\/p>\n

He told\u00a0<\/span>Kicker<\/em><\/a>: “I compare him to Zinedine Zidane in terms of skills, technique and overview, and anticipating a situation.<\/p>\n

“Zidane didn’t seem quick, but it was when he hit the ball. Havertz can do that too.”<\/p>\n

Matthaus has, however, also warned that Havertz still needs to work on certain areas of his game to reach the very top.<\/p>\n

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“He could score more goals and improve himself in the short movements with special training,” he added.\u00a0“He has a good eye, good ball control, good positional play, fine technique.<\/p>\n

“In addition, Havertz plays intelligently and uses his body well. Havertz is on the way, but nuances will decide whether he will make it to the top, whether he will be an excellent player or just a very good one.”<\/p>\n

This comes after Rio Ferdinand likened the Chelsea star to a former Manchester United teammate of his, Dimitar Berbatov, believing he has all the traits of the Bulgaria immortal.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe reminds me of (Dimitar) Berbatov, a player I played with at Manchester United,\u201d Ferdinand said<\/a> after Chelsea’s 2-0 Champions League semi-final win over Real Madrid.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s got that little lazy swagger at times, when you feel like he\u2019s got a bit of nonchalance about him. But the guy\u2019s just so smooth man. The game slows down to his pace and he gets things done really, really elegantly, his touch is always exquisite.<\/p>\n

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