Arsenal to Struggle Winning Premier League with Kai Havertz as Main Striker

Arsenal has been one of the best teams in England and Europe for the past two years. Arsenal has been elevated to potential winners under Mikel Arteta, who has given Manchester City a serious competition but ultimately lost out on the title two times in a row. While the team looks flawless on paper and most of the time on the pitch, what could be the missing factor? Despite a hefty 65M pounds investment and a resurgence as Arsenal’s no 9, Kai Havertz, as the main man upfront, could be holding the Gunners back from a 15th league title and maybe a first European crown.

Mikel Arteta’s Experiment

After struggling at Chelsea football club, Kai Havertz was surprisingly purchased by Arsenal last season, which aimed to bolster their depth to compete with Manchester City for the title. While Havertz did not have a definitive position as he was deployed as a midfielder, a striker, and also a winger, Mikel Arteta preferred to start him in midfield in place of Bayer Leverkusen-bound Granit Xhaka who left the club after almost eight years.

Arteta preferred a midfield three of Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, and Kai Havertz at the start of the 2023/24 campaign.  There was frustration among the fans as they claimed Arteta to be too stubborn after sticking with Havertz despite inconsistent displays. Arteta tried something new to Incorporate the German into the side. Gabriel Jesus struggled with injury concerns, and Arteta deployed Havertz in the No.9 role, where he started to gel.

The German scored several important goals last season, which pushed Arsenal to pursue a proper championship challenge. With 16 goals and eight assists in his debut season, he slowly changed the perception of the fans about him. Despite his resurgence, Arsenal finished the season trophyless yet again. They finished the season on 89 points, two behind champions Manchester City. They were also knocked out early in the domestic cup competitions. They were eliminated in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals by a Bayern Munich side that went trophyless for the first time since 2011.

Despite Arsenal winning almost every game against the top 6, their main striker, Kai Havertz, has just three goals and three assists home and away this season against the Top 6 opposition. With Erling Haaland having scored 69 goals in 69 games for Manchester City in just the Premier League and having won an incredible treble in his first season at the club and a league title in the second, is this what’s keeping Arsenal behind their title rivals and trophies?

Arsenal’s Reliance on Saka and Martinelli

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Overall, Arsenal is a really good team, with a packed defense and a steady midfield. The team has some serious attacking talent, such as Martin Odegaard, Gabriel Martinelli, Leandro Trossard, and the amazing Bukayo Saka. It is evident that in the past two years, nearly 70% of goals and assists in the Arsenal team have come from Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli. With almost 110 goals for the Gunners at 23 years old, the two have undoubtedly contributed to Arsenal’s ascent as regular title challengers.

Trossard has proved to be a vital asset for the Gunners as he has 31 goals and assists in 71 games, he is known for scoring crucial goals and putting in stellar clutch performances. Apart from the wide forwards, where are the goals? Gabriel Jesus is very inconsistent in front of goal and unreliable regarding fitness. There is no other proper number 9 in the team except for the German, whose numbers are improving but not quite what you would hope for from a world-class center forward.

The over-reliance on the Arsenal wingers, especially their star man Saka, to bail them out with his brilliance every time is sustainable for the team and the Arsenal number 7. At just 23 years of age, there might come a team where he would feel burnt out and might regress as a player with so much pressure expectations, same goes with the Brazilian Martinelli, who is already been inconsistent and for now second fiddle to Trossard. Champions Manchester City can be a huge example here as their wingers have lower goals and assists tally compared to Arsenal, but they are still banging in goals.

They have one of the top center strikers in the world, and in the 24/25 season, they have won three out of three games, with the Norwegian already having two hattricks. This picture also depicts the number of titles they have won since Haaland signed for City. Additionally, it demonstrates what the Gunners still lack, despite how perfect they have been. Will Arteta sooner or later realize this and sign a genuine center forward? Or will he stick with Kai Havertz and eventually make him into one?

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