Bayer Leverkusen’s Kai Havertz becomes third-youngest player to celebrate 50 Bundesliga wins
Kai Havertz celebrated his 50th Bundesliga win with a goal in Bayer Leverkusen’s 3-2 victory at Union Berlin, becoming the third youngest player in Bundesliga history to do so behind only Christian Pulisic and Julian Draxler.
The Germany international brought his side level by sublimely lobbing the onrushing Rafal Gikiewicz, a goal that put Leverkusen on course for a crucial win in their pursuit of securing UEFA Champions League football next season.
Karim Bellarabi would eventually go on to seal a dramatic victory in the dying seconds to ensure Havertz left the capital with a milestone three points.
Havertz brought up his half century at the tender age of 20 years and 249 days – a record bettered only by former Schalke man Draxler (20 years, 232 days) and Dortmund old boy Pulisic (20 years, 235 days).
Watch: An analysis of Havertz's game
All three men found the back of their net in their 50th wins too; Draxler scoring in Schalke’s 4-1 dismissal of Nuremberg on the final day of the 2013/14 season and Pulisic on the scoresheet in a 3-2 win over Fortuna Düsseldorf in his penultimate Bundesliga appearance last year.
Havertz reaches the achievement in his 106th outing in the German top-flight, a rapid return but one Draxler (101 games) and Pulisic (89) managed to reach even quicker. But the Leverkusen youngster has arguably had a greater impact than his German and American predecessors in bringing about those maiden 50 victories.
He took his Bundesliga tally to 29 goals and 21 assists against Die Eisernen, meaning he has now been involved in a combined - and perfectly symmetrical - 50 league goals.
And the bulk of those have been decisive ones, with Havertz hitting 24 and laying on 16 - a total of 40 goals - in winning causes. That puts the returns of both Pulisic (10 goals/17 assists) and Draxler (12 goals/17 assists) from their own first 50 wins in the shade.
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So far in 2019/20, Leverkusen have also won each of their five matches in which Havertz has scored.
As they toast their German wonderkid at the BayArena, Leverkusen fans will be hoping for much more of the same to come in the many years that still lie ahead in a still precocious career.
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