The manager of the Gunners had acknowledged that his mentality has changed as a result of the £65 million summer signing.
There were many unanswered issues when Kai Havertz first arrived at Arsenal, not the least of which being where he would actually play.
In his three seasons at Chelsea, the German had never really settled into a regular role. He had been deployed as an eight, a nine, a ten, and occasionally even as a winger at Stamford Bridge due to the managers’ frequent changes. However, Mikel Arteta was clear about how he intended to use him.
Havertz was supposed to play in midfield when he joined the team last summer for a contentious £65 million deal, according to club insiders.The plan was for the 24-year-old to make Arsenal into a side that played far more aggressively by moving into the number eight spot that Granit Xhaka had held the season before.
At first, that was adhered to. Havertz was almost primarily utilised as a centre midfielder after making one appearance as a centre forward in the Community Shield triumph over Manchester City. The German took some time to adjust to the responsibilities of the new role before things seemed to finally click in December, but the results were mixed.
It appeared like Arteta’s grand scheme had finally been revealed. But football is rarely that easy.
As they say, necessity is the mother of invention, and this instance was definitely true to that extent. Arteta was compelled to shift Havertz further up the pitch due to an injury to Gabriel Jesus, Eddie Nketiah’s decline in play, and the need to add Jorginho’s steady presence to the midfield. After starting the German as a striker for seven straight games, he hasn’t looked back.
Nor is the part he’s been required to play remotely comparable to a false nine. The German is making runs in behind opponents, earning flick-ons, and getting on the end of crosses. When Bayern Munich visits the Emirates on Tuesday, he’s playing exactly as you would expect Harry Kane to, and it’s almost obvious which position the England international plays.
Havertz has excelled in this capacity, scoring four goals in just seven games. With seven games remaining, the former Chelsea player reached his highest-ever goal total in a single Premier League season with the last of them, which came in Saturday night’s victory against Brighton. Given how well things are going, Arteta has acknowledged that he had to scrap his original plans for the German.
At the Amex Stadium, he told reporters, “A lot of times the players decide where they have to play.” “It flows when you have certain concepts and then observe certain links. You have to release it when it flows. Kai is currently experiencing that, and he feels quite at ease there. The rest has evolved organically, and the team is really at ease having him around.”
Arsenal is expected to add a striker player to their ranks this summer despite a run that has seen them soar from sixth to first in the Premier League scoring rankings. Players like Nico Williams and Viktor Gyokeres are being strongly linked. But maybe Havertz’s unexpected performance in the centre forward position will make Arteta reconsider.