Does Kai Havertz start against Chelsea?
Arsenal midfielder Kai Havertz faces the prospect of playing against his old side Chelsea for the first time since his summer transfer. Havertz, who joined Arsenal for a reported £60+ Million deal. Which to be fair, left some Arsenal fans baffled, but as time has gone by he has started to improve and show just why Arteta wanted him in the first place.
A lot of Arsenal fans were shocked by the Havertz transfer, and after a hard start to life at Arsenal, things have started to pick up for him, scoring a penalty against Bournemouth after his teammates stepped up and let him finally get off the mark and score his first goal for the club, also picking up his first assist in our 1-0 win over reigning champions Manchester City.
He was picked to compete for Germany under new coach Julian Nagelsmann in the just past international break, but only got to play just under half an hour in the first game against the USA, so Arsenal fans will be hoping that hasn’t lowered his confidence at all and will come back to London ready to face off against the side he called home for three seasons.
Thomas Partey is also back from injury so Havertz has a bit more competition to start against Chelsea and depending on how Arteta wants to set up to play can really depend on if Havertz will start or not. A game that will no doubt be a lot of pressure on his shoulders, but also a game that could really get his confidence going. I think it’s a really big decision for Arteta to have to make, after finally getting going, getting his first goal and assisting the winning goal against City, would it be wrong for Arteta not to start him?
Frankly, Arteta has always and will always pick what he thinks is his strongest side, and although Chelsea have been going through a bad period of football, Arsenal vs Chelsea is always a big match in which anything can happen.
It will be interesting to see the starting line up and should be a clear indicator on where Havertz stands in this Arteta system.
What’s your thoughts Gooners?
Daisy Mae
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No .. No .. and NO!
Havertz has been an attacking midfielder in the past games, doing more attacking duties with almost no defending obligations. All the pressure was on Rice, who approved that he could handle it; if MA wants to play someone besides Rice, it must be Partey or even ElNeny, who could play harder and add pressure on their offence.
But if MA wants someone to add on the attack and less on defence, then he got everyone!
ESR – Veira – Neilson
Havertz must be benched; he hasn’t shown anything yet, allowing him to be a starting player.
Nketiah, Havertz and Jorginho must relish the chance to play against their old club. We could use their extra motivation, but our starting line-up in the Man City game have also proven to be very effective against a strong opposition
You have to start the German International and champions league winner at the bridge.
Where better to start a player trying to find his feet than his old stumping ground, no motivation will be necessary in a fixture of this nature for big German.
Normally I would say NO but for Chelsea I will make an exception because quite a few players score against there former clubs
Maybe start him on the bench and bring him in later or start him and if not playing well then Sub him
The Partey/Rice/Odegaard midfield combination is one of the most formidable in the PL. This is no time for an experiment that has only provided a single assist and no on-field goal for Havertz.
It will be easier for Chelsea to manage us if Arteta decides to dump Hazartz who has only proven to be a passenger in the CM position in the game. Let him play from the bench
Start Havertz on the bench, and use as a sub to try and change the flow of the match.
To suggest “strongest” lineup and to include Havertz over Partey in midfield is laughable. Partey is a top top DM, proven time and time again. Meanwhile, Havertz has underwhelmed time and time again, not just with Arsenal, but his career at Chelsea.
Havertz is a flat tire in the midfield, don’t think he will ever be the 8 Arteta envisions, as he lacks the intensity, hustle, and ability to take control of a match. He is a passenger at best, and an anchor at worst.
At the moment I prefer Havertz as a sub regardless of the opposition.