Kai Havertz has joined Arsenal on a long-term contract, following in the footsteps of the likes of William Gallas, Petr Cech, David Luiz, Willian, Lassana Diarra and Yossi Benayoun that moved to North London from the Blues of West London. Arsenal had a keen interest in Havertz, and as expected, the likes of Edu Gaspar and Mikel Arteta are delighted on getting their first signing of the season. 

Edu said, 

“We’re excited to bring Kai to the club and great work by everyone to get this deal complete. Kai is an exciting addition to our squad, who will bring great attacking quality and versatility. 

“As an experienced 24-year-old, his signing represents another important step in strengthening our young core of talented players we have at Arsenal. We look forward to working with Kai.”

Arteta on the other hand was very excited of his latest addition, 

“Kai is a player of top quality. He has great versatility and is an intelligent player. He will bring a huge amount of extra strength to our midfield and variety to our play.

“We welcome Kai and his family to Arsenal Football Club and we are all excited to start working with him when we start pre-season training soon.”

Without further ado, here are the pros and cons of Signing Kai Havertz.

The Pros

Versatility – The Arteta Watchword

Kai Havertz is a player renowned for featuring in several positions from his Bayer Leverkusen and Chelsea days, deployed as a second supporting striker, attacking midfielder, right winger and center forward. With Romelu Lukaku shipped out to Inter Milan and Armando Broja, first away on loan to Southampton and not really earning the trust of his manager on his return to Stamford Bridge, Havertz was tasked with leading the line for a considerable chunk of his Chelsea career.

This essentially means that he provides cover in multiple positions at Arsenal should the need arise, or based on the manager’s tactical switches on the pitch.

Replacement for Granit Xhaka

Granit Xhaka served the club for seven great years and it seems that he’s on his way out with a move to Bayer Leverkusen touted. He should have been out the exit door a while ago, but it is understood that he had an agreement with Arsenal to secure his replacement before he departs.

Havertz has been earmarked to replace Xhaka in the famous ‘left 8’ position and with Oleksandr Zinchenko making his usual forays to central midfield, the German schemer can duplicate what Xhaka did last season, drifting into the box to support the attack and add further impetus to Arsenal’s attacking play in the final third.

Fits the Current Age Profile of the Team

With the exception of Jorginho, Mo Elneny, Thomas Partey and Granit Xhaka, the current crop of players in the club are in their early and mid-20s, which gives them the opportunity to gel with each other and grow as a team, as Arteta continues to lead the charge of this exciting project at the Emirates.

Havertz just turned 24 in June and he clearly fits the age profile of the team, giving him a chance to blend well with his new teammates and fit perfectly to the cause. With an average age of 24, Arsenal almost entered the record books last season for being the youngest ever team to win the Premier League but fell short due to the prowess, quality and experience of the Manchester City juggernaut. Mikel Arteta and his charges will be expecting to compete once again in the forthcoming campaign.

Premier League Experience

Havertz is battle-tested in the Premier League, after spending three years at Stamford Bridge, notching up 139 appearances. With this knowledge, Arsenal is signing a player that already has experience in the competition, and will require little or no adaptation period, which can be very helpful for new signings in this division.

Outstanding Injury Record

Havertz was an ever-present for Chelsea in his three years at the club, with his only recognizable absence in the club being a bout of COVID-19 that he suffered in November 2010. In the course of three years in Stamford Bridge, he notched up close to 50 appearances per season, which will give Arsenal some comfort, regarding his injury history.

The Cons

His Form

Havertz form in his time at Chelsea was a far cry from the outstanding performances in Bayer Leverkusen that allowed the London outfit part with £72 million to acquire his services. In his last two seasons in Bayer Leverkusen, Havertz scored 37 goals in 87 appearances, and was touted for great things following his move to Chelsea, but his form in Chelsea didn’t light any fireworks, and that should be a legitimate concern for those associated with Arsenal.

His Underwhelming Performances at Chelsea

When Havertz featured consistently in attacking midfield or just behind the center forward at Leverkusen, he was a very influential player for the club and his performances on the pitch were very good. Looking at his WhoScored profile, his average WhoScored rating in his last three seasons in the Bundesliga were 7.00, 7.24 and 7.25, while his WhoScored rating in the three campaigns at Chelsea were 6.60, 6.85 and 6.75.

Arteta and Arsenal will be aiming to improve his performances and the onus will be on Havertz to work on hoping to improving his game. 

We are looking forward to having Havertz at the club and hope he has a wonderful time at the Emirates.

Sayonara.

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