Havertz a ‘broken man’ as pundits pile on ‘weak’ Arsenal star who needs more than ‘sympathy penalties’

Kai Havertz is a “broken man” who’s “a bit weak for our football” and isn’t bringing anything to the Arsenal party, according to multiple pundits who have all piled on the former Chelsea star at once.

The Gunners made the surprise move to sign Havertz from Chelsea for £65m in the summer, with manager Mikel Arteta reportedly forcing through the move.

The Germany international has struggled since his arrival at the Emirates, having been played in a midfield role he’s clearly unsuited to for much of the season so far.

He’s looked far more comfortable when he’s operated further forward in the false 9 position he played in at Chelsea, but Arteta has typically preferred either Gabriel Jesus of Eddie Nketiah as his striker.

The fans are starting to get frustrated by Havertz’s performances and Chris Sutton believes the 24-year-old “needs a break” to kickstart his Arsenal career.

Sutton told the ‘It’s All Coming Up’ podcast: “Havertz looks a broken man, a player with absolutely zero confidence. Having been there myself, it’s not a nice place to be.

“The effort is there but he seems muddled. decision-making isn’t good. He’s trying but looking at his body language… he needs a break, a big moment. Not sympathy penalties like earlier in the season.”

Despite some big performances for Chelsea, including the winner in the Champions League final in 2021, Havertz rarely looked as good as he did in his Bayer Leverkusen days, and Dean Ashton has questioned whether he has the physicality for the Premier League.

“In the Bundesliga when I watched him I thought that kid is special, I think he’s going to be a special player,” Ashton said on talkSPORT.

“But he just looks a bit flaky, a bit weak maybe for our football.”

READ MORE: Big Weekend: Newcastle v Arsenal, big-game Chelsea, Erik ten Hag and DCL

Havertz played the full 90 minutes against West Ham, again in an unfavoured midfield position, and after the game Darren Bent questioned whether he has done anything of note since he joined the club.

“I hate singling out one player but I need someone to explain why 65 million was spent on Kai Havertz and what exactly is he bringing to the team?” Bent said on talkSPORT.

“15 games into the season I haven’t seen anything substantial.”