During the MLS All-Star week, both the Major League Soccer All.-Stars and Arsenal first teamers competed in a skills competition which is traditional in the US league before the midseason exhibition.

While stars shined on both sides, Kai Havertz went viral for being off target in every one of his attempts in the cross-and-volley challenge.

Kai Havertz flops in MLS All Star week

Kai Havertz had shots blocked and shot balls way above the crossbar, he is the first player in MLS All-Star skills history to not register a single point in the cross-and-volley challenge.

More importantly for the former Chelsea striker, Havertz will want to improve on just 19 goals in 91 Premier League matches for Chelsea. Havertz was signed by Arsenal for a reported fee of £65 million.

Karim Benzema‘s departure for Saudi Arabian side Al Ittihad leaves a huge vacancy at Real Madrid. Therefore, the club has been linked with a number of players, including Harry Kane or Kai Havertz.

However, neither the English striker nor the German star would be available this summer. While Tottenham remain reluctant to sell their captain, the Chelsea forward is reportedly joining Arsenal.

Of course, a move for PSG superstar Kylian Mbappe has also drawn a lot of speculation, but it looks like Madrid are exploring other alternatives anyway. The latest word on the street is they have set their sights on an Argentine world champion.

Rumor: Real Madrid to ask price for Lautaro Martinez

According to Sport, Real Madrid are keeping tabs on Inter Milan striker Lautaro Martinez, who won the World Cup with Argentina at Qatar 2022. The club’s idea would be to ask how much the Nerazzurri want for him, and then decide.

The 25-year-old has made an impression during his time with the Italian giants, leading the club to a Serie A title in 2021 and two Coppa Italia trophies in 2022 and 2023. Additionally, Martinez also helped the club reach the 2023 UEFA Champions League final.

Lautaro may have not performed as expected in the World Cup, but he still played a part in Argentina’s success. Besides, let’s remember that he was a key contributor on the road to Qatar.

In the aftermath of Roman Abramovich’s controversial ties with Vladimir Putin, the London team entered a new administration led by Todd Boehly but things haven’t gone according to plan so far.

The new owners firedThomas Tuchel early in the season, but Graham Potter couldn’t right the ship and now Frank Lampard is already in the hot seat despite being the interim manager. According to Havertz, firing Tuchel may have been a mistake.

Kai Havertz suggests Chelsea shouldn’t have firedTuchel

“Everything that can go wrong went wrong for us this year,”Havertz toldKiker, via SB Nation. “The season actually started relatively quietly. We had a change of ownership, which was a big change for the whole club. And then Thomas Tuchel was fired, which of course always makes a difference in a team like this when you’ve been successful with a coach and then gets fired out of nowhere.

“[A] good phase [followed under Graham Potter but after the World Cup] we didn’t play very well and lost a lot of points. [There were] a lot of new players over the winter who first have to feel comfortable in order to be able to call up their quality [and] now we have our backs to the wall and not very well in the table.”

Chelsea are by far the biggest disappointment of the season, since they spent millions but got no results whatsoever on the field. Maybe Havertz was right and the chaos started the day they fired Tuchel.

Still the German international has hit a hot streak scoring in Chelsea’s last three matches and cooling the waters of under-fire boss Graham Potter. Still looking to have a breakout year Havertz is hoping his latest run of form will elevate his stock at the club.

While the supporters might have a toxic relationship with their forward his teammates don’t and have given Kai Havertz a strange nickname that the German has embraced.

Chelsea players call Kai Havertz “Donkey”

Kai Havertz’s nickname at Chelsea is “Donkey”, yes like the animal in the Shrek films and the four-legged member of the horse family. Havertz has a major love for donkey’s and has mentioned that the animals give him “peace”.

“Some of my teammates call me Donkey. It’s not because of my football. From day one, I felt a special relationship with donkeys. It’s a very calm animal: maybe I personalized myself in them because I’m calm too.

“They chill all day, don’t do much, just want to live their life. I loved them always. When I lost, I would go to the sanctuary. You look at the animals, see something human in them. It was a kind of recovery, a place I felt peace” the talented German forward mentioned to The Sun.

Germany have a very complicated game against Spain. Die Mannschaft need a win to have their fate on their own hands, but the Spanish side is a very strong squad and they proved it with the 7-0 win over Costa Rica.

Hansi Flick, German coach, decided to change some thing in his initial squad. Kai Havertz didn’t appear in the starting 11 list and the striker will have to wait for an opportunity to come from the bench during the game.

Why is Kai Havertz not starting for Germany vs. Spain?

Germany’s debut in Qatar 2022 was not what they expected to be. Japan surprised everybody with a 2-1 win over Die Mannschaft, so this game against Spain is vital for their hopes in this tournament.

From that game against the Asian squad to this one, Hansi Flick changed a couple of players in his starting 11. One of those is Kai Havertz, Chelsea’s striker, who will see the game from the bench.

Fortunately,Havertz is not injured. This decision to sti him is only because Flick wants more players in te midfield and that’s why Leon Goretzka took his place in the starting 11.

It is expected that Havertz will have some minutes this game if Germany needs a striker. In the starting 11, Serge Gnabry appears as the only natural forward for the 2014 World Cup champions.

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Despite what on paper should have been a decent season, Chelsea was caught up in a bit of a firestorm with issues around unhappy players like Romelu Lukaku and Christian Pulisic, as well as the sale of the club after Román Abramóvich’s UK assets were frozen.

Matchday365 did a comparison with three players at Chelsea, all three have been under the microscope by fans during the season but one of the three, the most questioned, leads the stats category big time.

Christian Pulisic dominates the stats when compared to Kai Havertz and Timo Werner

Despite all the media and social media backlash when it comes to straight stats, Romelu Lukaku is the club’s leading goal scorer with 15 and Mason Mount leads with assists at 16. The three players we will focus on now, Havertz (13G/5A), Werner (11G/6A), and Pulisic (8G/4A), have complied these numbers for the season.

To the naked eye Havertz is the most productive of the three, but when taking a closer look, it’s the USMNT star player that is leading the stats when compared to minutes played on the field per 90 min.

Pulisic leads in goals and assists when compared to his time on the field to the other two. Pulisic leads in key passes, while Havertz leads in big chances created. Successful dribbles, Progressive carries, Progressive carry distance, duels won, and percentage of duels won are all led by Pulisic.

Despite playing as a role player and having missed some matches due to injury Pulisic has been extremely productive for Chelsea, when given the opportunity to showcase his talent. By no means do these stats suggest Pulisic is a better player over the other two, but it does suggest that the American does contribute when on the pitch.

Rumors have begun to swirl that Pulisic is on the radar at Juventus and his father did tweet recently that the USMNT player is upset with his lack of playing time at Chelsea. While showcasing a lot of talent and being clutch in some big matches, Pulisic has not been able to keep it consistent with Chelsea be it for dips in form overall or injuries.

Hard to imagine that the current FIFA Club World Champions, and until May, Champions League winners have felt so much heat from their supporters. Chelsea is a club that despite their inconsistencies are fourth in the Premier League, still have the FA Cup to play for, and boast one of the more talented sides in the world. Still, the club has the shadow of its sale after Roman Abramovich was banished from English football.

It would seem that every time something does not go right at Chelsea the game of musical chairs as to who to blame shifts, last night it was the turn of Christian Pulisic, Kai Havertz, and N’Golo Kanté for a “loss” and elimination in a game Chelsea can hold their heads up high for.

Christian Pulisic, Kai Havertz, and N’Golo Kanté feel the heat on social media

After a terrible first leg against Real Madrid, the blues were all over the Spanish giants, with 28 shots on goal to Madrid’s 10. 57% of the possession belonged to Chelsea and they had 10 corner kicks to 1. Still, it was not enough.

On Twitter and Reddit, the digital world’s version of a cesspool, “fans” spared little love for American Christian Pulisic who could not capitalize on 2 opportunities. Pulisic’s season has been disappointing, derailed by injuries and inconsistent form, Pulisic has been no better than the rest of his teammates up and down campaign. In the Champions League the USMNT star had 2 goals and 1 assist in 7 matches. Pulisic’s best performance came in the series against Lille where he scored his only 2 goals in each match. In the first game against Real Madrid the 23-year-old handed in one of his worst outings in a Chelsea jersey.

Many fans have made Pulisic the brunt of their attacks, with one claiming “he is not fit to wear the 10 jersey at Chelsea”. The reality is Pulisic played a lot of games for Chelsea out of position and last scored on March 5th against Burnley. Pulisic has been asked to do a lot of the dirty work for Thomas Tuchel and has produced 6 goals in 30 games this season. Pulisic’s inconsistency to cement himself in the Chelsea squad has been cause for concern for the USMNT fanbase and at times all she wrote for the Chelsea supporters who demand more from their number 10.

Kai Havertz received a 4 rating from L’Equipe and while his game was “quiet” he played the full 120 minutes. In the Champions League Havertz scored the lone goal in the first leg against Real Madrid and added 2 more previously. Havertz who had a difficult start to his season, but since has scored 5 goals in his last 5 games, handing in his best performances of the season.

Havertz seems to be getting comfortable at Chelsea and his goals have come against Real Madrid, Newcastle United, and most recently against Southampton. When used exclusively as a center striker Havertz has 6 goals in 13 games, his best output, but fans believe the German to “not be a world class striker” and continue to write him off.

Maybe the player who has taken the most abuse has been N’Golo Kanté, the French midfielder who had a poor Champions League playing 6 games with 0 goals and 1 assist. Injuries have hurt his season and, in the league, N’Golo Kanté has 2 goals and 4 assists in 21 games. The French star was bashed with memes and criticisms of his slow play. It has not been an easy season for Kanté but the same can be said for the rest of the Chelsea squad.

Only two weeks ago Timo Werner was feeling the heat, before that Jorginho “was not the same”, and Mason Mount was a “waste of money”. It would seem that on social media where the idea is to destroy someone rather than have a proper discussion even the most talented soccer players are devoid from the support they need from “fans” when it matters most… after a brutal defeat.

Located on his bicep the Batman tattoo has what appears to be the Christopher Nolan version of the bat suit holding the Champions League match ball. Havertz uploaded the image on social media and got the bulk of the jokes from his Chelsea teammates.

Cesar Azpilicueta responded to the tattoo story on Instagram stating: “Hope you don’t tattoo this bro”, with a picture of the two post-match. Antonio Rudiger replied to Havertz’s Twitter post with a laugh that the young midfielder got a Batman tattoo.

Chelsea players mock Kai Havertz’s Batman ink

Havertz has deleted the tweet with his Batman tattoo, and reports suggest he may have felt a bit embarrassed by the flak his teammates were giving him.

The world is getting ready for a new Batman movie which is set to hit theaters in March. Batman mania is running wild and if Havertz keeps his goal scoring up, why hide that Batman ink?

Big-time signings have also been part of the Premier, and this transfer window could see a record-breaking move. According to The Sun, Harry Kane isset to joinManchester City, after Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy finally agreed to release the team’s superstar to English rivals.

The Citizens have been long-time admirers of the England international, especially after he made clear to be wantingout of Spurs this summer. They’d meetthe $220 million price tag Levy set for Kane, establishing the record transferin the Premier League history. Here, find out who are the 10 most expensive signings in the league so far, with the figures provided by TransferMarkt.

10. Angel Di María (Manchester United)

Following an outstanding performance in the 2014 UEFA Champions League final in which he helped Real Madrid winning the so-called “Décima” (tenth UCL title), Angel Di María made a shocking move to Manchester United for $82.50 million becoming the most expensive signing in the league at that moment.

However, as we know, the move didn’t turn out well and it is considered one of the biggest flops in the Premier League history. Di María is undoubtedly one of the best Argentine players from the last two decades, he even helped his national team winning a long-awaited Copa America title, but his lone season at Manchester wasn’t one to remember. He played in 27 league games, scoring just three goals while providing 11 assists.

9. Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)

Unlike the previous record-signing transfer, Kevin De Bruyne‘s move to Manchester City for $83.60 million ahead of the 2015/16 campaign had clearly a much better result. The Belgian superstar rose to stardom at the Etihad following a breakout spell at Wolfsburg and went on to become a Citizens legend.

De Bruyne, who couldn’t shine at Chelsea before, had a great return to the Premier League amassing 177 appearances throughout five seasons with the Sky Blues, with whom he lifted the league trophy three times.

8. Kepa Arrizabalaga (Chelsea)

Goalkeepers play a crucial role in the game, even though they oftendon’t get the credit they deserve. Chelsea, however, knew how important having a dependable man between the sticks could be, so they went all in and spent $88 million for Kepa Arrizabalaga, who left Athletic Bilbao in 2018 to become the Premier League’s most expensive goalkeeper.

As we know, that move didn’t work as expected, as Kepa struggled to be the reliable keeper the Blues were looking for and he even was in the eye of the storm for some unbelievable mistakes. Eventually, he lost his place in the starting eleven, but his move to Chelsearemains the highest transfer for a goalie in the English first division.

7. Nicolas Pépé (Arsenal)

As we’ve seen so far, spending loads of money not always pays off. Nicolas Pépé seems to be a clear example ofthat, as the $88 million Arsenal spent on him hasn’t brought the expected results. The former Lille player arrived for the 2019/20 seasonas one of the most promising talents from Ligue 1, but he left a lot to be desired.

Still, it hasn’t been all bad. Pépé may have not lived up to expectations, especially considering how much they spent for him, yet he proved some glimpses of his talent and scored some stunners with his left foot. Then again, Arsenal are still expecting more from Pépé before jumping to any conclusion, but it seems like the $88 million bid for him was way too excessive.

6. Kai Havertz (Chelsea)

Following a season without spending due to a transfer ban, Chelsea were desperate to make big-name signings ahead of the 2020/21 season looking to get back to local and continental prominence. Kai Havertz became their record-breaking signing for $88 million and he ended up responding in the best possible way.

The 22-year-old has made a statement at Bayer Leverkusen, yet few clubs were able to spend after the pandemic outbreak. That wasn’t the case for the Blues, who seized their huge budget and secured the German superstar. Havertz may have struggled to shine during his first season, but he paidback the confidence in him scoring the winner in the 2020/21 Champions League Final.

5. Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)

They say that a good attack can win games, while a good defense wins championships. Liverpool made a wise decision in January 2018 byspending $93.12 million on Virgil van Dijk to add the piece they were missing to get back to glory days.

The former Southampton defender was ready to chase a new challenge in his career, but the question was who wasgoing to meet Soton’s demands. The Reds seemed to make a bold move at that time, spending too much money for a centerback, but eventually, they proved to be right. The Dutchman has become a key piece at Liverpool’s defense and helped themto succeedat theChampions and PremierLeague.

4. Romelu Lukaku (Manchester United)

The Red Devils are once again on this list, proving they were desperateand wealthy enough to make some of the biggest signings in the Premier League. Manchester United paid $93.17 million to Everton for Romelu Lukaku in 2017, who became a goal-scoring machine at the Goodison Park.

The Belgian striker was up to the challenge at Old Trafford, but the club wasn’t at its best times at that moment. Lukaku was one of the few standoutsin disappointing years for the Red Devils, as he scored 42 goals in 96 Premier League appearances.

3. Jadon Sancho (Manchester United)

A highly-anticipated move that finally became true, Manchester United sealed Jadon Sancho’s arrival from Borussia Dortmund for $93.50 million ahead of the 2021/22 season. It was no secret that United were long-time admirers of Sancho, who was a complete standout at the Bundesliga.

Aiming towin silverware after a long time, they have finally secured the England international for alower price than expected, even though it’s still a big sum of money. Needless to say, the Premier League fans will be in for a treat this season.

2. Harry Maguire (Manchester United)

Following van Dijk’s record signing for a defender in early 2018, Manchester United seemed to have learned thatto fight for a championshipthey must boost their defense as well. In August 2019, they acquired Harry Maguire from Leicester for $95.70 million.

The Englishman has certainly impressed during his spell with the Foxes and United apparently saw in him the answer for their problems at the back. It didn’t turn out as well as van Dijk’s move to Liverpool did, but Maguire eventually proved his worth and now he is just hoping to win a major prize to confirm they were right in signing him.

1. Paul Pogba (Manchester United)

Manchester United have definitely made the most expensive signings in the Premier League history so far. Then again, spending loads of money not always secures results nortrophies. The Red Devils shocked the soccer world in 2016 by landingPaul Pogba from Juventus for $115.50 million, making him the highest incoming transfer in history by then.

By signing him for such money, United seemed to be admitting they were wrong in letting him go only a few years ago. The French superstar impressed at Juve and he was undoubtedly a world-class player. However, over $100 million seemed to be a bit excessive for him, and he even struggled to be at his best for the Red Devils. To be fair, Pogba didn’t have much of a superteam to help United tasting glory again and he even delivered good performances, but the money invested in him didn’t bringthe expected results so far.