Can a move to Arsenal rekindle Fantasy Premier League (FPL) interest in Kai Havertz?

The Gunners finally confirmed the German’s arrival from Chelsea on Wednesday night, a fee of £65m for the 24-year-old attacker being mooted.

Havertz endured some difficult moments at Chelsea but will the move improve his prospects in FPL?

We take a look in this Moving Target report, where we have included data from our Premium Members Area.

HAVERTZ’S FPL HISTORY

After joining from Bayer Leverkusen in 2020, Havertz made 91 Premier League appearances for Chelsea but scored just 19 goals. He also provided 11 assists.

He memorably scored the winner against Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League final in 2021, yet it’s hard to properly evaluate his time at Stamford Bridge.

Weighed down by the £80m price tag that had been paid for him, the player himself described his first six months after his move from Germany as the most challenging of his career. He was also hit particularly hard by a bout of COVID-19 later that season.

Then, in 2022/23, he was used in lots of different positions and systems by Thomas Tuchel, Graham Potter and Frank Lampard, which goes some way to explaining his underwhelming output of just seven goals from 30 Premier League starts.

However, over three top-flight seasons, Havertz is yet to hit double figures for goals, underperforming his expected goals (xG) in each campaign (see below) and raising question marks about his finishing ability.

For sure, there were plenty of instances when he was unlucky last season, but he undoubtedly needs to sharpen up and become more clinical in the final third.

Meanwhile, Havertz’s ability as a creator is perhaps an overlooked part of his game. He was Chelsea’s top chance creator last term, registering 38 key passes, but was often let down by his teammates’ finishing, with his one Opta assist coming from 2.76 expected assists (xA).

HAVERTZ’S PLAYING STYLE

“More or less, I’m a midfield player but I like to go into the box” – Kai Havertz

Havertz excelled as an attacking midfielder at Leverkusen, though he spent much of his time at Chelsea playing as a centre-forward, which his average position map from 2022/23 shows:

However, he’s hardly a natural no. 9 and didn’t feel entirely comfortable playing the role, which he discussed last year:

“I don’t have a favourite position. I know I’m not a real no. 9, just waiting in the box and doing headers. I want to be influential in the game, get the ball, drop sometimes into midfield and start attacks there.” – Kai Havertz

Havertz is capable of playing anywhere across the forward line, as a no. 10 or central midfielder, but it might be playing a slightly deeper role on a regular basis that truly unlocks his potential.

After all, he works hard off the ball, presses very well, has good passing ability and is technically excellent, something Thomas Tuchel has previously touched on:

“I see a Dennis Bergkamp, Robin van Persie, Dimitar Berbatov kind of player. He can play in the half-position, because he has good runs, but he also feels free from the no. 9 and creates overloads to one side and he arrives in the six-yard box. He has a good timing for it.” – Thomas Tuchel

His aerial ability could also be important, given that he’s 6ft 2in.

Indeed, his 24 headed goal attempts was the sixth most among all FPL players in the Premier League last season, so it’s a strength Mikel Arteta will surely look to utilise.

Above: FPL players sorted by headed goal attempts in 2022/23

WHERE HAVERTZ FITS IN AT ARSENAL: NO 9 TO ‘LEFT 8’?

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