16 Jun 2023 14:14:29
Afternoon everyone,

So, are we all warming to the idea of Havertz joining us yet? I know I am.

I think him and Rice are solid additions and if we can add Lavia and a quality full back we should be very satisfied with our summer business.

Saka, Saliba, Ramsdale and Nelson all signing new contracts with Odegaard to follow as well cannot be sniffed at.

Lets see how the rest of the window goes but I can't say I'm not optimistic about the look of the squad come our opening match of the season!

1.) 16 Jun 2023
16 Jun 2023 16:38:30
Hopefully we stump up for Rice and then we are almost good to go Glenn.

2.) 16 Jun 2023
16 Jun 2023 17:24:16
I have a feeling Sally that the Rice deal will end in tears.

3.) 16 Jun 2023
16 Jun 2023 20:36:08
What does he bring because it isn’t goals, I’d like to know peoples thoughts, and don’t say premiership experience, I want to know what he will bring to the team.

4.) 16 Jun 2023
16 Jun 2023 20:59:41
I'd prefer Maddison over Havertz.

{Ed014's Note - I’d prefer a cat over Maddison

5.) 16 Jun 2023
16 Jun 2023 21:14:13
What kind of cat, Ed?

{Ed014's Note - the kind that makes a run towards the penalty area to draw a foul so he can take the free kick, try and score a worldie from it but do naff all else.

So a 5hit cat really ?‍♂️?

6.) 16 Jun 2023
16 Jun 2023 22:15:10
Haha sold for £60m!

7.) 16 Jun 2023
16 Jun 2023 23:15:29
Kai Havertz - no thank you. We need a 20 plus goals per season deadly striker.

{Ed002's Note - He is not a striker.}

8.) 17 Jun 2023
17 Jun 2023 11:58:31
But Ed he’s been playing as a striker for them, I wouldn’t want him in midfield either Ozil was weak in there and so Is he, it’s a big no from me I would prefer lukaku, easy 20 goal for us.

9.) 17 Jun 2023
17 Jun 2023 19:41:39
He was meant to be an easy 20 goals for Chelsea too, maybe they would be interested in pepe in a flop for flop swap?

10.) 17 Jun 2023
17 Jun 2023 22:33:07
I’m sure he’s scored a few goals before last season scores loss for Everton maybe Chelsea don’t suit him but he’s scored premierships goals.

11.) 17 Jun 2023
17 Jun 2023 22:34:36
Eden we are taking one of there flops hopefully we don’t.

12.) 17 Jun 2023
17 Jun 2023 22:43:35
bit so so on Havertz really certainly there is good talent there but he's not a 20 goal seasoned striker is he tbh more a verstile deep lying striker that floats around not sure if he would fit in with the other players and the system. Is he going to offer something more than what Jesus already does or more than what Saka or Martinelli offers out wide, I don't think so. Yes we need squad depth but we need different tactical options with it too. I would looking at big up top CF to give a different type of attacking option to what we have, another prime Giroud if you like. let's save funds there and I rather give Balogun a chance I say. let's nail Rice and Caceido younger models to replace Xakha and Party. Then you have Jorginho and Elneny as decent expierenced CM backups that won't be too upset about not being regulars on rotation.

13.) 17 Jun 2023
17 Jun 2023 23:20:44
Weren't Salah and KDB both Chelsea flops?

14.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 08:15:43
Hello 62, you couldn't keep away you old rascal??.

15.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 08:21:49
What's the point you're trying to make, g62?

16.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 08:44:50
Great point 62. I think signing Havertz could be a shrewd piece of business in my opinion, he’s quite a versatile player who could cover the positions of RW, CAM and CF if needed, I mean look how well we played when we stuck Trossard up top…he’s not a striker either but he linked up play brilliantly and for me Havertz is an upgrade on Leo who’s 29/ 30 now. He could play that link up role that Giroud used to do but the difference here is Havertz has some bite about him too in which he can press defenders which Giroud couldn’t as he had no pace. When he was at Leverkusen he played these positions n played them well enough to command an £80m fee at the age of 19/ 20 I think he was, he was world class in each position, if we can help him recapture the form he was in at Leverkusen we would have ourselves quite the player. Our style is completely different to Chelsea’s in which I really do think he’d flourish.

Can’t wait for the new season to start!
COYG ❤️?.

17.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 14:48:43
True but we seem to sign CFC flops - Clown of a defender and Willian. Players no one else was interested in and Chelsea were more than happy to off load on to.

Who else is interested in Havertz.

18.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 14:55:22
Hard to argue with this logic

Havertz wouldn’t start for Arsenal – Burley

Talking about the 24-year-old German international, Burley said: “If Arsenal were to play the same way as last year, he won’t get in the team.

“He doesn’t get in ahead of [Gabriel] Martinelli, he doesn’t get in ahead of [Gabriel] Jesus as a striker.

“And he certainly doesn’t get in ahead of Bukayo Saka.

“Then you start looking at, are Arsenal paying £70m to beef the squad up?

So - who benefits more? Chelsea selling him for 70m and then using that to make them better OR us with a 70m squad player?

19.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 15:26:19
Unless he's coming in as a Xhaka replacement. Then maybe this makes sense.

20.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 16:11:37
But not many players are gunna displace Saka, Martinelli or Jesus nor would many arsenal fans want them displaced, I mean Jesus was brought to spearhead our attack last year otherwise he would never have left serial winners City. We need competition for places in the team so why not build the best squad you can get? We’re in 4 competitions next season with a lot of games to be played and if we actually want to compete to win then surely we need the best we can get. Unfortunately we can’t attract the Mbappe’s at this time.
A squad wins you trophy’s not 11 players mate

❤️?.

21.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 18:49:25
Between KDB and Salah, did they even get 10 games collectively while at Chelsea? They shone at the clubs they played at and earned their big transfers.

Havertz is the complete opposite. He came in for big money, hasn't shone at all, and is expected to sell for big money.

22.) 18 Jun 2023
18 Jun 2023 21:46:01
I agree with SY4. What’s the point of blowing £70m on a squad player who will sit on the bench. He won’t replace Saka, Jesus, Martinelli or Ode, and in fact, based on his performances for Chelsea, he doesn’t even replace Trossard who already has to sit on the bench, alongside ESR, who is also covering those roles.

It seems like we risk going back to the Wenger bad days, when we started to acquire clone players, who all played similar roles and potions and styles. Maybe we should just acquire Maddison as well, so we can have him, Havertz and Trossard all on the bench together!

Saying that, if the bid by Spurs is to be believed, I would take Maddison and Barnes for £70m over Havertz anyway, but ultimately if we really do have £70m to blow, could we not find a position where that player would be amongst the worlds best and go straight into the first xI? For example £70m should get you a world class right back, plus also allowing White to move into CB?

23.) 19 Jun 2023
19 Jun 2023 08:32:50
Recency bias is massive in football.

Kai Havertz is an elite player in terms of his technical attributes and Arsenal will evolve to use him. He will be a good signing no need to overthink it.

#8 against low block teams (which we will see a lot more of next season) , or an attacking option to change up the game.
#7 to compete with saka
false #9 to compete with jesus

It does make me think that ESR may be done though because he has exactly the same profile.

24.) 19 Jun 2023
19 Jun 2023 09:59:41
Roge, to find ways to make Kai effective for us is something Arsenal will have to figure out. But we're paying 60 to 70 million for "potential" here. He could very well turn out to be one of those players whose technical attributes only come to the fore in the Bundesliga.

Totally unconvinced with this signing (if it happens) , but got to trust the process.

25.) 19 Jun 2023
19 Jun 2023 13:00:23
His value on transfermarkt is 60m and that's about right for his profile.

Comp Played Goals Assists
Bundesliga 118 36 25
Premier League 91 19 10
International 36 13 13

Paying for Potential would be coughing up 88m for a player valued at 15m on transfermarkt playing in a fringe european league that nobody had heard of 6 months before.

26.) 19 Jun 2023
19 Jun 2023 13:43:10
Is that how we're evaluating players now? So Eberechi Eze who had more goals than him last season should be valued higher? He's not. And there are about 2 dozen other players that score more than 7 goals - some of them not even strikers, last season. All of them not worth a whopping 70 million quid.

But you're right. It was Chelsea that paid for potential. We're paying for potential that didn't quite pan out.