"He's playing that role very, very well" – Pundit claims Arsenal star was 'a nightmare' for Newcastle United because of his movement
Rangers legend Ally McCoist has lauded Kai Havertz for his stellar performance as a centre-forward in Arsenal's 4-1 Premier League victory over Newcastle United on Saturday (February 24).
Havertz, who joined the Gunners in a potential £65 million move from Chelsea last summer, started ahead of Gabriel Jesus in the number nine role this weekend. The 24-year-old scored once before assisting Bukayo Saka's goal in the 65th minute of their recent encounter.
After the German's 24th-minute tap-in, McCoist showered praise on Havertz for his excellent outing in his makeshift role against Newcastle. He told TNT Sports before the first half whistle (h/t The Boot Room):
"Just talking about Declan Rice and playing one forward, I'm watching Havertz there, clearly in that position, just dropping 10, 15 yards back. He's actually on a couple of occasions slightly deeper than two of his midfield members."
Hailing the Arsenal midfielder's off-the-ball movement, McCoist added:
"It must be a nightmare for [Newcastle defenders Sven] Botman and [Fabian] Schar. He just disappears into that hole and they can't go with him. And then he appears late. As I said, he's playing that role very, very well tonight."
During his 76-minute display at home against Newcastle, Havertz completed 20 of 23 passes and registered one shot on target. He created one chance, won four out of 10 duels, and made two interceptions as well.
Kai Havertz and Mikel Arteta shower praise on Arsenal star after Newcastle United win
After Arsenal's latest 4-1 home win, Kai Havertz labelled his ex-Chelsea teammate Jorginho as world-class due to his standout display in a defensive midfield role. He said (h/t Metro):
"I know him a lot, so for me, it is nice to play with him... he knows me well. It makes life easy for me, he is a world class player."
Asked about Havertz's comments about Jorginho, Mikel Arteta replied:
"He is certainly. He's a top player, especially when the opponents have certain behaviors or a certain set-up. The way I can imagine the game, he is going to have a big impact, but I think you have to do it at this level and when he's not playing consistently, credit to him because he was magnificent today, again."
Jorginho, who left Chelsea six months prior to Havertz, acted as Arsenal's midfield lynchpin against Newcastle. The 32-year-old completed 92 of 103 passes and won one of one tackle and four of seven duels too.
So far this season, the Italian deep-lying playmaker has started 12 of his 25 games across all competitions for Arsenal. He has found the back of the net once and laid out as many assist in 1,132 minutes of action.