Legendary former Arsenal star Ian Wright was seriously impressed by one man as the Gunners overcame Porto on Tuesday night.
Whilst he did not get on the scoresheet, Kai Havertz performed a pivotal role up front for Arsenal against Porto.
Along with club captain Martin Odegaard, Havertz was at the forefront of the Arsenal press over the course of the ninety minutes and throughout extra-time. The German was relentless in his running, and battled fiercely in duels from the first minute to the last.
In one instance, the 24-year-old even managed to get the Emirates Stadium crowd fired up when he shoved Porto manager Sergio Conceicao, after a brief encounter on the touchline. Havertz somehow avoided picking up a booking for this, and the incident also demonstrated the fighting spirit that the former Chelsea man played this game with.
Havertz put his physicality and aerial prowess to such good use against Porto that he almost broke an Arsenal record in the process. Mikel Arteta will be delighted with the manner in which he conducted himself on the pitch at the Emirates Stadium last night.
Havertz did not let the north London club down in the penalty shootout either. He was the second Arsenal man to step up, and he made no mistake from the spot, as he cooly sent Diogo Costa the wrong way.
Ian Wright hails Kai Havertz for stepping into Arsenal spotlight v Porto
This was an assured performance from Havertz, who deserves huge credit for getting to this point, given he looked so desperately short on confidence when he first arrived at the club in the most recent summer transfer window. It has taken time for him to find his feet at Arsenal, but Arteta has never let his faith in the 42-cap Germany international waver, and is now reaping the rewards for that.
Havertz has proved many of his critics wrong in recent weeks, and he is now a vital part of this Arsenal team. If he can maintain his current form until the end of the season, then he may well have a huge say in the Gunners’ pursuit of both Champions League and Premier League glory.
Arsenal icon Ian Wright is not surprised to now see Havertz shining for the Gunners. The former striker always believed in his ability as a player, and feels that Havertz and this Arsenal team just needed time to adapt to one another in order his influence to come to the fore.
Speaking on his Wrighty’s House podcast, he said, “he has been impressive. Because, in the games he’s played…like I’ve said right from the start, obviously when he’s started for us, he was playing how he’s playing now, but we didn’t know him. He’s got his way he plays, his mannerisms, he’s got this gangly kind of loping kind of vibe. We’ve seen that now. When he’s at his best, he’s exactly how he was at the start of the season. Now, he’s confident and he’s scoring goals, but the way he plays hasn’t changed. Now we’re used to him, people know what he’s capable of. You can see he’s got a bit of, like, gnarly-ness in him.”
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