Paul Merson simply can’t believe Arsenal have signed 24-year-old

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Paul Merson says he simply can’t believe Chelsea have sold Kai Havertz to Arsenal this summer.

The 24-year-old completed a switch to the Emirates Stadium last week as Arsenal splashed £65 million to land the German international.

Havertz has largely struggled during his time in England after making the switch to Stamford Bridge from Bayer Leverkusen in 2020.

But Merson believes Havertz will prove to be a good signing for Arsenal and questioned Chelsea’s decision to sell to a direct rival.

Merson stunned by Havertz signing

Merson believes Havertz will be a useful option for Mikel Arteta due to his versatility.

“Kai Havertz is a good signing and he definitely improves Arsenal,” Merson told Sportskeeda. “He fell behind the eight ball last season, but that was the case for everyone at Chelsea barring Thiago Silva and Reece James.

“He looks a bit like Mesut Ozil in terms of his effortlessness on the ball, so if he’s not playing well, people sometimes think he isn’t bothered. It’s not like he’s not trying; it’s just how he plays football. When they’re winning, it’s elegant and classy but when they lose, fans will jump on him like a rash – much like what was the case with Ozil.

“Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli had the seasons of their life, but they didn’t score more goals in the 2022-23 campaign than someone like Mohamed Salah, who was deemed to have had an off-season by his standards. Arsenal will look to compete in the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League next season, so they need options and a bit of unpredictability, something Havertz brings to the table thanks to his skill set and versatility.

“When Martin Odegaard wasn’t playing well at the end of last season, Arsenal struggled to string together a run of wins. If that were to be the case next season, Mikel Arteta has another weapon up his armory in Havertz, who can play a handful of positions across the front six.

“It’s a clever signing by the club that allows them to mix it up slightly. When they buy players, there’s a thinking behind it, so I have a good feeling about this one. I’m absolutely astonished Chelsea sold him to Arsenal, I find it extraordinary, to be honest.

“I know they’re trying to balance their books by offloading a few players, but I personally don’t get how it makes sense to sell important players to direct Premier League top-six rivals.”

It did come as a surprise to see Chelsea allowing Havertz to join their London rivals. But it’s fair to say that the two clubs have done plenty of business with each other over the years. 

Havertz also struggled during his time at Stamford Bridge and with Mauricio Pochettino coming through the door, they are desperate to trim a bloated squad.

Arsenal will certainly be hoping that Arteta gets the best out of Havertz as he failed to impress during his time at Chelsea.

He was mainly used as a make-shift striker for the Blues, which was quite evidently not his best position.