Kai Havertz has been on a roller-coaster journey since joining Arsenal from Chelsea last year, and is now in the best form of his career in England.
Although Havertz won the Champions League at Chelsea, he endured three difficult years in West London as he never truly settled, in a chaotic time for the club as they faltered on and off the pitch.
Mikel Arteta raised eyebrows as Arsenal spent £65m to sign him from Chelsea, and Havertz initially struggled to perform in midfield, leading to heavy criticism.
However, he since moved to a striker role, and has thrived since, both in terms of goalscoring and overall performance levels, and Havertz’s display against Southampton was a match-winning one as he led the line superbly after scoring an equaliser.
Havertz stepped up in the absence of Martin Odegaard, and the Arsenal captain has praised the German, as he named five factors behind his improvement over the last year in the matchday programme before the Southampton clash.
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Martin Odegaard praises Kai Havertz’s hard work and mentality
Two factors behind Havertz’s improvement have been mental, with Odegaard praising both his work to better himself, and his strong mentality to deal with adversity.
“Kai scored a great header to start it for us – he has been in brilliant form for us lately. I would put that down to his hard work, because he really is committed every single day,” Odegaard explained.
“And also his mentality. He always wants to do better, he puts in 100 per cent in every session, and then plays every game, every minute of every game if he has to.”
Kai Havertz’s positional change has helped him thrive
Odegaard also believes that Havertz changing his role from a deeper midfielder to a striker, or even a midfield/attack hybrid, has helped get the best out of him.
“He’s playing a bit higher up as well now, as the striker or the No10, and he’s so good in so many areas – not just the goal he scored on Tuesday, but his running with the ball, competing in the duels. It was a great performance,” Odegaard stated of Havertz’s performance against PSG.
Arsenal have helped Kai Havertz thrive with supportive environment
Odegaard has listed two further reasons for Havertz’s improvement, as he has highlighted how the German has fully adapted to life in North London.
“On top of that, I think he feels really at home here now. He’s fully adapted to the team, the way we play and to the people around him,” he added.
“I think we all knew he would do it. Even at the beginning of last season when he wasn’t scoring, we all saw the quality he has, and it was just about helping him to get it out.”
Odegaard also emphasised the importance of the culture Arteta has built at Arsenal, as a big reason for Havertz succeeding compared to the difficulties he faced at Chelsea.
“I think that shows the benefit of being happy in your environment too,” Odegaard pointed out.
“It’s what we have created here at the club. Everyone who plays here feels at home, they feel really comfortable and when you feel like that you just want to get better and better. That leads to success, when everyone is happy, feels together and a real part of something.”
In a year, Havertz has gone from a much-criticised player often benched as he was finding his feet, to one of Arsenal’s most important players, and he is proving why he can be the striker to lead his side to the Premier League title.
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