Arsenal star Kai Havertz has thrived since moving to a centre-forward role, and he has silenced most of his critics since joining the club.
Havertz initially struggled in midfield, raising huge questions over why Mikel Arteta chose to sign him from Chelsea, and Arsenal have been linked with several strikers over the last year.
Even after Havertz moved to a number nine role in January and started performing superbly, many claimed that Arsenal needed to sign another striker in order to compete with Manchester City and Erling Haaland.
However, the attacker has kept up his incredible form from the end of last season, and Havertz has scored in all of Arsenal’s five home games so far, with the German netting the opener in a player-of-the-match display against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.
Alan Shearer, who is the all-time record goalscorer in the Premier League, has now praised Havertz, and highlighted why he can be the striker Arsenal need to win the title.
Alan Shearer praises Kai Havertz for performance vs PSG
Speaking on The Rest Is Football Podcast, Shearer highlighted Havertz’s goal against PSG, which saw him produce a superb header from Leandro Trossard’s cross, as an example of why he is now a true centre-forward rather than a false nine.
“He put in a proper centre-forward’s performance. Even the goal when he was really, really brave. It was a great cross in, but he didn’t shy away from getting it,” he explained.
Shearer then emphasised the importance of Havertz’s hold-up play and movement in the second half, which helped Arsenal secure the victory and clean sheet.
“But even take the goal away, I just thought his hold-up play when his team needed a foul, he won his team a foul. I thought he was clever. I thought it was a brilliant centre-forward performance from him,” he added.
Kai Havertz is now a ‘proper’ striker for Arsenal
Although many still believe that Arsenal need a number nine in the mould of Haaland, Havertz is proving that he is more than capable of leading the line under Arteta.
The German now has the goal record to back up his performances, and he plays a very important role in build-up, with Havertz recently admitting that he now loves winning duels as part of his game.
The 25-year-old is becoming clinical in front of goal, can challenge in the air, and offers clever movement and physicality upfront, and there is now little he cannot do when compared to other centre-forwards.
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