Summer signing Kai Havertz has received a lot of criticism since his arrival, and Graeme Souness has now hit out at Mikel Arteta for his decision to bring the German to Arsenal.
There was a lot of surprise when Arsenal chose to spend £65m on the midfielder after three difficult years at Chelsea, and he is yet to score or assist in six matches across all competitions.
Souness, writing for the Daily Mail, has now questioned why Arteta signed Havertz, given his poor form at Chelsea, and claimed that it will be difficult for the Spaniard to get a tune out of him.
“Not all of Arsenal’s spending makes sense to me,” Souness claimed.
“They’ve laid out £65million on Kai Havertz. Surely you’re not spending that kind of money on what he’s shown at Chelsea in the past three seasons?
“They’ve shelled out in the hope that Mikel Arteta can get a very, very different tune out of him than Frank Lampard, Thomas Tuchel or Graham Potter ever did. Good luck with that one, Mikel.”
Slow adaptation
Havertz has struggled at the start of this season but put in an encouraging performance against PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League on Wednesday.
It is clear that he is lacking in confidence, but one goal could change his fortunes if it gives him a boost.
He looks set to start in Sunday’s North London Derby match against Tottenham Hotspur, having been benched against Everton last weekend. The 24-year-old can provide a physical presence in the middle of the park, but this will be a game in which he cannot afford to hide.
It is too early to say whether Arteta has made a mistake in spending so much on Havertz, but he will need to start delivering soon to justify what was a massive gamble in the transfer market.
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