Micah Richards reckons £65m Arsenal player could change positions if Julian Alvarez signs

Arsenal are trying to sign Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid.

The Argentine’s situation at the Metropolitano is growing ugly after he was loudly whistled at by his own fans at the weekend.

That, of course, is because of his well-known desire to join La Liga rivals Barcelona.

However, Atletico are refusing to sell to Barca, who can’t seem to afford the deal anyway, leaving the door slightly ajar for Arsenal to swoop in.

Arsenal’s internal feeling is that a fee can be agreed with Atletico. The only question is whether Alvarez can be convinced to choose the Emirates over waiting endlessly for Barcelona.

If a deal does materialise, Micah Richards thinks it could lead to an unusual positional change for another Arsenal attacker.

Micah Richards suggests a position change for Kai Havertz if Arsenal sign Julian Alvarez

Speaking on The Rest Is Football, Richards made the point that Arsenal should definitely go for Alvarez if a deal is possible.

“If they could get someone like Alvarez, it would take them to the next level,” he said. “Are Atletico Madrid going to sell him to Barcelona? It might be one for Arsenal to just sneak in there and offer a bid.”

But then Richards offered a more eyebrow-raising suggestion about how Mikel Arteta might accommodate Alvarez in his team.

“I think Havertz can play off the right too. And sometimes we’ve seen Saka needs a rest. So Havertz has played off that right and done it really well before.”

With respect to Richards, and it is really an interesting contribution to the debate, this particular idea doesn’t quite hold up.

Arsenal already have Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke and Max Dowman as their right-wing options.

Moving Kai Havertz, who Arteta clearly views as his best centre-forward, out to the right flank to accommodate Alvarez is a very complicated solution to adjusting things.

If Alvarez signs, the more natural solution would be to play either Havertz or Alvarez himself as a second striker or number ten.

Alvarez has played off the left flank at times during his career, so even that would be a more logical option given Arsenal’s need for options in that area.

Besides his obvious quality, the whole point of signing Alvarez is his versatility in the frontline. He can play as a centre-forward, as a second striker, or wide left.

Dragging Havertz out to the right when there are at least three other natural options for that position would be a bizarre way to use him.