Kai Havertz Explains the Differences Between the Premier League and the Bundesliga

Chelsea midfielder Kai Havertz has opened up on the differences between the Premier League and Bundesliga, admitting that the English top flight has a greater intensity than the German division.

Havertz swapped the Bundesliga for the Premier League in the summer as Chelsea paid £75.8m to prise the wonderkid away from Bayer Leverkusen.

The 21-year-old struggled to make a telling impact in his first outings for the Blues against Brighton and Liverpool, but hit a hat-trick against Barnsley in the Carabao Cup and chipped in with a clever assist during Chelsea's comeback against West Brom three days later.

Havertz admitted that the jump from the Bundesliga to the Premier League took a slight adjustment at first.

"It was difficult for me, especially because the Premier League is a completely different league," the German international told Chelsea's official club website. "It's more intense and I noticed that in the first few games.

"The intensity in the duels and the runs is much higher. It's a completely different league and the games are very exhausting.

"The Bundesliga isn't worse but I noticed differences. It seems to me like there aren't any average or bad players here – everybody is at a very high level."

Havertz admitted that he did not get off to the quickest start in west London, but added that his treble against Barnsley acted as a confidence boost.

"It has gone pretty well for me recently but I think there is also still a lot of potential upwards," he continued. "I want to exploit that in the next few weeks and months.

"The hat-trick [against Barnsley] was good for me. The start was a little difficult because I only trained with the team for five or six days, then played the first game right away. It was also a very big step for me to leave my family and familiar surroundings. Of course, it takes time to get it right.’