Arsenal star Kai Havertz has now admitted that he used to be afraid of facing the Gunners.
Kai Havertz has finally started to truly show his quality for Arsenal in recent weeks. He has now scored four goals in his last seven games for the north London club, as the midfielder netted again against Brighton and Hove Albion on Sunday afternoon.
The German attacker now looks like a player full of confidence. He is playing with conviction and is making the kind of forward runs that come with a real hunger to get on the scoresheet.
However, he did not hit the ground running at the Emirates Stadium. After his £65 million arrival from Chelsea in the recent summer transfer window, the player looked fairly bereft of confidence. His touch was off, he would go missing in matches, and when a shooting opportunity did arise his effort would be tame. Inevitably, Havertz attracted plenty of criticism in this period.
However, Mikel Arteta clearly had great faith in the player and that is now paying off handsomely. Havertz has settled at the club and looks like a player transformed, and is winning over his early detractors.
Kai Havertz opens up about Arsenal aura of fear
Reflecting upon a rollercoaster first few months at the club, Havertz has now discussed his decision to join Arsenal in the summer. In an interview with Sky Sports prior to the game against Brighton, the 24-year-old said, “as soon as I spoke to the manager and to Edu and all of these guys, I felt straight away that something special was happening [here].
“Last year the club was so good and every time we played them I was scared, so to be part of this project, it didn’t take me long to think, so it all went very fast but I’m very happy now.”
Last season was a momentous campaign for the club. Seemingly out of nowhere, the Gunners emerged as genuine title contenders. They led the Premier League table for the majority of the season. Ultimately, though, their title tilt faltered on the final straight and they were overtaken by eventual champions Manchester City.
Arteta will be desperate to see his side go one step better this time around and actually get their hands on the trophy. In order to do so, they will need to retain that aura that strikes fear into the hearts of their opponents, which Havertz was on the receiving end of last season.
Plenty of opposition defences will now be worried about coming up against Havertz in his current form. Now, he, and his teammates, need to maintain this momentum all the way to the title this time around. They are currently top of the Premier League table and have to believe that they have what it takes to stay there until the end of the season.
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