New Arsenal signing Kai Havertz can become one of the ‘greatest players of his generation’, claims Pat Nevin
Posted by  badge Boss on Jul 11, 2023 - 09:16PM
Kai Havertz has swapped Stamford Bridge for the Emirates Stadium (Picture: Getty)

New signing can become one of the ‘greatest players of his generation’, according to former winger Pat Nevin.

The German international has swapped Stamford Bridge for the Emirates Stadium after .

Havertz spent three mixed years at Chelsea, scoring the winner in the 2021 Champions League final against but often flattering to deceive.

The former Bayer Leverkusen star joins an Arsenal side that finished as runners-up in the Premier League last season and qualified for the Champions League for the first time since 2017.

Havertz is one of a number of players to leave Chelsea this summer along with N’Golo Kante, Mason Mount, Mateo Kovacic, Kalidou Koulibaly and Edouard Mendy, but Nevin says Havertz’s departure ‘hurts the most’.

‘I think Havertz could still be one of the greatest players of his generation,’ the ex-Chelsea and Scotland winger told .

‘He was playing at centre-forward at Chelsea and that is not his strongest position. Playing there really took away the strongest parts of his game.

Havertz is currently on Arsenal’s pre-season tour of Germany (Picture: Getty)

‘Arsenal have sealed an absolute cracker of a deal with Havertz. I’m really confident that Mikel Arteta will be able to get the best out of him as well.

‘Arsenal’s team for next season is already looking extremely good. I think replacing Granit Xhaka in midfield as well is a big upgrade.

‘Even though he scored the winner for Chelsea in the Club World Cup and the Champions League, we still have not seen the best of him. Arsenal have got a great player.

‘While I think Chelsea may have got the better deal in terms of selling Mount, I think Arsenal have got the better deal by signing Havertz.’

Havertz scored nine goals in 47 appearances last season in a Chelsea team that finished just 12th in the Premier League – the club’s worst performance since 1994.

Despite his mixed spell at Stamford Bridge, Havertz .

The German helped Chelsea win the Champions League in 2021 (Picture: Getty)

‘A big thank you for all your support, we achieved a dream of winning the Champions League together,’ the 24-year-old added.

After signing a long-term contract at Arsenal, the German heaped praise on Mikel Arteta’s squad and said he hoped to help the Gunners win trophies.

Arsenal came close to winning their first league title since 2004 last season before a wobble towards the end of the campaign allowed Manchester City to .

Mikel Arteta’s side almost won the Premier League last season (Picture: Getty)

‘It’s super exciting for me to be joining this amazing club and to be part of the Arsenal family,’ Havertz said. ‘This club has such a big history, and I hope we can achieve lots of things.

‘The mentality in the Arsenal squad is very high and you can feel that. That was one of the reasons why it has been so hard to play against Arsenal recently.

‘The aim is to win trophies and I’m going to give everything to do that for the supporters and everyone at the club. I’m now looking forward to meeting all the players and the staff when we come back for pre-season.’

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