Mikel Arteta has described Kai Havertz as a genetic “powerhouse” and backed the Germany international to compensate for Arsenal’s failure to sign a forward in January.
The Gunners made no secret of their desire add an attacking player in the midseason window following injuries to Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus but were unsuccessful after having a £40 million ($49.9m) bid rejected by Aston Villa for Ollie Watkins.
Jesus is set to be sidelined for the rest of the season after undergoing knee surgery while Saka is not expected back until next month at the earliest, putting more focus on Havertz to play a key role as Arsenal challenge on three fronts.
Ahead of Wednesday’s Carabao Cup semifinal second leg against Newcastle, Arteta backed Havertz — a £65m signing from Chelsea in 2023 — to handle the workload, which could theoretically mean starting every game for the rest of the season.
“I don’t know … it is a possibility [he could start every game],” Arteta said. “Maybe we go through that scenario and he scores another 15 or 18 goals? Can you imagine? That’s a good scenario.
“Genetically, he is a powerhouse. He is so well-built. He is a player that anything you ask him, he is happy to do: to run in zone six, to be very robust, to make long distances. His body absorbs everything. And then he really looks after himself.
“When you see the professional, how he lives his life, it is immaculate. He does more than any other player there. That is not a coincidence. And then I think he is so intelligent.
“He knows what is good for him and what is not. We know how to manage him and we believe that when he says something it is for the right reason, not because he wants to avoid something. When something works, don’t touch him.”
Havertz has scored 15 goals and registered five assists in 33 games this season but has faced criticism for a series of bad misses, particularly during the period when Arsenal won just once in five games last month, including a 2-0 first-leg defeat to Newcastle.
“He has played a lot of football but his robustness, his availability is unbelievable,” Arteta continued.
“When you ask him he feels better when he is playing every three days. Against Girona for example, we gave him a rest. And then he felt fresher.
“He then had a very demanding game physically against Manchester City for the role that he had to do. We will see how they are. Players give you a lot of information but if you are playing well and scoring goals, all this helps.”
Arteta also claimed Arsenal will soon appoint a permanent sporting director to replace Edu, who resigned in November and is set to take up a prominent role leading the multi-club model spearheaded by Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis after completing six months of gardening leave.
Sources have told ESPN that the Gunners have now identified a shortlist of candidates to consider alongside interim sporting director Jason Ayto, who stepped up following Edu’s exit.
“The decision I think will be done relatively quickly, whether it’s Jason or somebody else I don’t know but I think that decision will be done quite early,” Arteta added.
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