Shy Kai is now Arteta’s most important player
Fans feared he was a £65m dud but Havertz’s blend of fight and guile has won them over
WHENtheArsenalteamsheetarrived on Thursdaynight, one enforcedabsenteestoodout. KaiHavertzwasmissingthroughsuspension. He hadfeaturedinall26oftheGunners’competitivematches this season—theonlyplayertodoso.
Bythefinalwhistleof the 2-0 defeatagainstWestHam,theguileandphysicalityofa man who was onceroundly criticisedabout those parts ofhis game was beinglongedfor.Howtimeshavechanged.
This week marks six months sinceHavert’s£65milliontransferfromChelsea.HewillreturntotheArsenalsquadthisafternoonwhentheyvisitFulham.
Ithasbeenaremarkabletransformationafterheovercameacripplingbattlewithconfidence,groansfromhisownsupportersand positional confusion to become anintegralpieceofMikelArteta’sjigsaw.
Following the club’s Community ShieldtriumphoverManchesterCityinAugust,itisunderstoodthatthemidfieldershunnedtakingpartinArsenal’spost-matchsocialmediavideo.Partlythroughshyness,partlythroughfeelinghehadyettosettlein.
ForHavertz,histransferwasamplifiedhaving come from a local rival. TheGunners faithful demanded he hit theground running. The cost did nothelp,either.Afeeof£65misnotsmall change, while £105mDeclanRicehasplayedlikehehasbeenatthecluballhislifesince signing only a couple ofweekslater.
ItallstartedontheWashingtonDClegoftheJulypre-seasontour during Havertz’s firstGunnersappearanceintheMLSAll-StarSkillscross-andvolleychallenge.
Asthe14deliveriesloopedintotheareaoneafteranother,the 24-year-old sprayed themeverywherebutatthegoal.
Youcouldsenseafterthefirstcoupleofmisses,hewouldhaveratheredthegroundswallowhimupthancompletethechallenge.
His initial league appearanceswerecharacterisedbyasenseofuneaseontheballandaconfusionoverhisrole.Artetahadearmarkedhim for a left-sided position inmidfieldalongsideRiceandMartinOdegaard.Initially,Havertzwaslostastowhichpositionsheshouldbeoccupyingandwhenheshouldbethere.
ThatlackofconfidencecouldbeseenagainstManchesterUnitedinSeptemberwhenhegavetheballawaytoChristianEriksenwhosetupMarcusRashfordforUnited’sopener. Fan growls were heardacrossTheEmiratesandafterthatmishap,heavoidedreceivingtheball, quickly offloading it backwardsorsideways.
Nowheisacompletelydifferentman,havingscoredthreegoalsinhislastsixleaguematches.Insiderssaythe1-0defeatatNewcastlewastheturningpoint,particularlyhisfoulonSeanLongstaff.
ItwasnotthattheclubwishedtoseetheGermanaggressivelytakeouthisopponent.ButhisdesiretofightforhisteaminahostileatmosphereshowedArtetaandtheexecutivesthathehasthecharactertheteamrequires.
‘He’s not someone that wants tobethereinthefrontlineoratleasthedoesn’tshowitinthatway,butthenifyouaskhimtogotowar,hewillbethefirstonedownthere,’saidArteta.
SourcessaythatArtetasobadlywantedHavertzbecausehecouldsensehowlowonconfidencetheplayerwasatChelseaandknewhecouldimprovehim.
Also, the club hierarchy saw hispotentialtoplaytwopositionsatthesametime—askillnotmanyplayerscandoeffectively.
Hisphysicalpresenceallowshimtobeatargetmantoplayovertheman-to-manpressoftenusedbyopponents this season. This wassorelymissedagainsttheHammers.Inthefinalthird,heaggressivelycounter-presses and invades thegapsbecauseofhisnaturalinstinct
as a forward. He puts in a shiftdefensively,too,especiallyasanaerial foil for opposition crossesandpuntsforward.
Thatversatilityisreflectedinhisheatmaps. Against Liverpool, itshowsHavertzmakingdeepforaysdown the left flank while also
tracking back to his own box indefence.
AgainstBrighton,hepepperedthepenaltyareaforaerialdeliveriesandcleverlyworkedthepocketson the fringes. That helpedcreatespaceforthelikesofGabrielJesustogetintoshootingpositions.
Itisunderstoodtheclubweretakenaback by the scrutiny Havertzreceived early on and went out oftheirwaytomakehimfeelsettled.
Thatcarecouldbeseenafterhislate winner against Brentford,whenArtetamadeabeelineforthe6ft4instaratfull-timeandpushedhim towards the away fans foracclaim.
Asaperson,heisashy,thoughtfulcharacter and well-liked aroundtheclub,hencewhyhisrecentformhasbeensowellreceivedbyteammates.
Off the pitch, he is passionateaboutanimals.Hehasthreedogs,ahorse,sponsorsadonkeysanctuaryandhischarityfoundation,theKaiHavertz-Stiftung, focuses on animalprotection.Theclub’straininggroundLabrador Win has evenvisitedtheHavertzhousehold.
IftheGunnerscanreversetheirrecentslump,theclub’sdogwillnot be the only prize Havertz willgethishandson.