The statistics of midfielder Kai Havertz in Arsenal’s 2-2 draw against Fulham in the third round of the Premier League 2023/24 last night (August 26) made everyone feel bored.
Before Fulham, Havertz continued to be trusted by coach Mikel Arteta to give him a starting position in midfield next to Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice. However, he played for less than 60 minutes before being pulled off the field to make way for Fabio Vieira.
According to statistics, in 56 minutes of presence on the field, Havertz only had 28 touches of the ball, and launched 22 passes, of which 20 were correct. Notably, only 4 of Havertz’s 20 correct passes were directed towards the opponent’s goal.
In addition, Havertz only launched 1 shot and of course, missed the target. He also had 3 dribbles and 4 touches in the Fulham penalty area.
In the defensive support stage, the former Chelsea star only made 1 tackle, 1 pass cut, won 1 air dispute and had 5 ball recoveries. All in all, these are lousy stats, showing that Havertz can’t attack and support isn’t enough.
Havertz has a lackluster performance. Entering the second half, Havertz took a break and was replaced by Fabio Vieira. Sharing with Sky Sports, former player Darren Bent commented on Havertz:
“Havertz surprised a lot of people when Arsenal spent £65m to sign him. I think Arteta is having the same problem as Chelsea. The question is: where will you put Havertz to play?”.
“Havertz is not a natural No. 9. He plays like a No. 10. However, Odegaard is occupying that role. I think Odegaard, Rice and Partey need to be placed next to each other.”
“At the moment, Havertz is like a passenger, lacking confidence. His teammates passed the ball to him but Havertz couldn’t find the right solution. The game was difficult against Havertz. Arsenal needed to make a move. The number changes when encountering Man United.”
In fact, in the first 3 matches in the Premier League 2023/24, Havertz played nothing outstanding. If you keep playing like this, it is likely that in the near future the German player will have to get used to the bench.