‘Tremendous’ Arsenal player is about to have the best season of his career, if he stays fit
Mikel Arteta has a decision to make in his striker position this season.
But deep down we all know he has already made it.
It’s pretty evident that Arteta prefers Kai Havertz to Viktor Gyokeres. Havertz was picked for the Champions League final and the crucial clash away at Manchester City in the title run-in.
Now, after starting and scoring in the Community Shield win, Havertz is poised to lead the Arsenal frontline against Coventry.
And if he can stay fit, there’s a real chance that this could be the best season of his career.
Kai Havertz can make this season his career-best
Havertz has never exactly been renowned for being a prolific goalscorer. He’s only exceeded the ten Premier League goal mark once, when he scored 13 in 2023-24.
The following season (2024-25), he was scoring at a rate that could have eclipsed his career-high tally of 17 from his Bayer Leverkusen days. He had nine goals before a season-ending knee injury in February.
Last season, another knee problem limited him severely — he returned in the second half of the campaign and scored just two.
But one of those was the pivotal winner against Burnley on the day before Arsenal were crowned champions.
We’re yet to see Havertz have a full, uninterrupted season playing as the centre-forward for Arsenal. But we have seen how devastating a combination he has with Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka, when all three are fit and firing.
It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to see that consistently — just once the three of them started a Premier League game together last season.
Kai Havertz vs Viktor Gyokeres should not really be a debate
Not only is Havertz easier on the eye than Gyokeres, the numbers show that he may even be a better goalscorer than the Swede.
As a centre-forward in the Premier League, Havertz has outperformed Gyokeres — 17 goals and 11 assists in 38 appearances versus 14 goals and 1 assist in 36. Gyokeres’ tally includes three penalties. Havertz has none.
That’s six more non-penalty goals and ten more assists in just two more appearances. And that is before you factor in everything else — the hold-up play, the intelligence, the movement, the combativeness. Things Gyokeres simply cannot do at the same level.
Havertz, who Arteta himself has described as ‘tremendous’ is a complete centre-forward in every sense when he is fit and fresh. If he can stay fit this season, I’m feeling bullish that he can rack up 20 Premier League goals.
