He didn’t play, but Germany’s media are all making the same point about Kai Havertz

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Kai Havertz was not in action in Germany’s Nations League defeat to Portugal, but he didn’t escape the headlines.

Havertz is one of several Arsenal players to miss out on June international duty, as the 25-year-old continues to find his feet after newly returning from injury.

Mikel Arteta’s makeshift striker underwent surgery on a hamstring tear sustained in February, but still made it back in time for the end of the season. 

Havertz had a tough time with injury at a pivotal moment in the Gunners’ 2024/25 campaign, leading to Julian Nagelsmann opting to extend the forward’s rest by omitting him from Germany’s squad for the June international fixtures.

• READ MORE: Every Arsenal transfer target called up for June international duty and how to watch them

German media make the same point about Arsenal’s Kai Havertz

Havertz returned to action ahead of schedule to play 33 minutes over Arsenal’s final two games of the Premier League season.

The Gunners were overjoyed to have their top goalscorer back, particularly Arteta, who was blown away by Havertz’s physical transformation.

The Arsenal manager certainly missed his striker, which is a feeling shared by Nagelsmann, as German media couldn’t stop talking about the forward despite him not featuring in Germany’s defeat to Portugal.

After the loss, Spiegel dubbed Havertz ‘irreplaceable’ to Nagelsmann’s squad, naming the Arsenal star as one of three players who ‘proved their worth through their absence’.

In a piece titled ‘The bitter reality’, t-online shared an identical review of the defeat, saying that Havertz’s ‘creative elements’ are what Germany ‘lacked’ in the fixture. 

T-online mentioned that Havertz and Jamal Musiala ‘harmonise perfectly’ with Florian Wirtz, honing in on what Die Nationalmannschaft were missing. 

Spox also name-dropped Havertz when reacting to Germany’s poor display, admitting the result could be blamed on ‘numerous injuries’ before singling the Arsenal man out as one of the most crucial absences. 

Havertz is sometimes underappreciated in the Premier League due to him not actually being a number nine, but Arteta’s work with the 2023 signing only proves how his game has elevated.

Now, the German national team are missing the 25-year-old tremendously, just as Arsenal were during his three-month spell on the sidelines. 

Havertz’s international record for Germany

Given how German media have slammed Havertz in the past, some may expect his international record to be less admirable than it is.

The Arsenal star has been capped 55 times by his country, scoring 20 times in that period.

What is quite remarkable is that in his 55 appearances, Havertz has racked up 37 goal contributions, recording 17 assists to complement his goals.

Nagelsmann now knows the brutal reality of having to sculpt his attack without Havertz, emphasising how integral the Arsenal man’s form will be in the run-in to the 2026 World Cup.