We’ve also had injury problems. We started without Gabriel and Zinchenko, and Martinelli, Saka and Jesus haven’t started a game together yet. Partey has also been missed and we’ve been integrating two new players. So understandable that we’ve been less fluid.

Good point, I’m not sure. The source of the data is here. I guess you could also include aerials won. However, my guess is that recoveries also include collecting loose balls, which could be from another player’s defensive action, so being in the right place to mop up second balls.

Edit: From opta’s definition, “This is where a player recovers the ball in a situation where neither team has possession or where the ball has been played directly to him by an opponent, thus securing possession for their team.”

Good point, I’m not sure. The source of the data is here. I guess you could also include aerials won. However, my guess is that recoveries also include collecting loose balls, which could be from another player’s defensive action, so being in the right place to mop up second balls.

Edit: From opta’s definition, “This is where a player recovers the ball in a situation where neither team has possession or where the ball has been played directly to him by an opponent, thus securing possession for their team.”

Not all of these actions result in recovering possession. You can tackle the ball from an opponent but it can result in a loose ball.

His progressive stats aren’t bad, especially considering he is on the ball less and has played some of his minutes up front. There is only a small difference in key passes and progressive passes, but if you were to adjust to look on a per pass basis it’s even more favourable (for instance, he plays more key passes per pass than Xhaka last season and Odegaard this season). I think the issue is not so much that he’s always going backwards it’s that he’s not on the ball enough.

Some take aways which I thought were interesting:

• Havertz’s underlying data for xG and xA is respectable (slightly better than Xhaka’s from last season and Odegaard’s from this season)
• His defensive numbers are extremely impressive
• His main weakness is that he’s on the ball ~25% less than Xhaka and Odegaard