The former Germany international spent two seasons at Stamford Bridge after joining from RB Leipzig in 2020, scoring 23 goals and providing 21 assists in 89 competitive appearances. He won the Champions League with Chelsea, but has now suggested that a different tactical environment might have allowed him to produce more of his most effective attacking football.
Speaking on the podcast The Late Run, Werner acknowledged that Chelsea's approach did not always create the situations in which he felt most dangerous.
“Maybe it was not the playing style that suited me best,” he said.
The forward explained that he could have benefited from a team more frequently able to attack quickly into space, pointing to Liverpool as an example of a club where he might have found more opportunities to use his pace.
“If I had played for Liverpool or another team, I might have had more of those situations in which we could have been successful through quick counter-attacks,” he added.
Werner's strengths have often been most apparent when he can run beyond the opposition defence, using his acceleration to exploit space behind a high defensive line. At RB Leipzig, he developed a reputation as a forward who could turn transitions into scoring opportunities, but Chelsea's tactical demands sometimes left him facing a different type of challenge.
The German arrived in west London with a formidable scoring record in the Bundesliga, having become Leipzig's leading scorer before his transfer. However, his Premier League goal return was more modest, and he was frequently judged on missed chances as well as his contribution to the team's attacking play.
His time at Chelsea was not without success. Werner played an important role in the club's Champions League-winning campaign, contributing goals and assists during the competition and using his pace to trouble opponents in knockout matches.
The contrast between his individual output and the team's achievements is central to his reflection. He is not dismissing the success Chelsea enjoyed, but believes the system was not always the ideal one for his own qualities.
The forward has since moved on to San Jose Earthquakes in Major League Soccer, following his return to RB Leipzig and a loan spell at Tottenham.
His comments offer a glimpse into how he views the Chelsea period with hindsight. The trophies remain a major achievement, but Werner believes a team built around more frequent counter-attacking opportunities might have allowed him to show a different side of his game.