Don Hutchison has slammed the ‘stubborn’ Mikel Arteta for his continued actions towards Kai Havertz by selecting him to start for Arsenal, with Manchester United visiting the Emirates on Sunday.
The former Liverpool midfielder thinks that Kai Havertz playing in the middle of the park for Arsenal ‘isn’t working’ after three Premier League games this season.
Hutchison urged Mikel Arteta to go back to type and start with his usual three in midfield – Thomas Partey, Martin Odegaard and new boy, Declan Rice, as he told BBC Radio 5 Live Sport.
Even before Kai Havertz’s big-money transfer to Arsenal could be confirmed, there was already negative noise about his move from Chelsea and how it didn’t make sense.
Before the 24-year-old even kicked a ball, he was labelled a ‘flop‘, so you can imagine what the noise is like now some feel he hasn’t started well.
Either way, with Manchester United in town, Arsenal will now get their biggest test of the season so far and Hutchison had a clear message involving Havertz.
“No, it’s not (worked for Havertz),” said Hutchison. “What’s happened is that it’s a manager being stubborn and it’s a manager that has spent a lot of money on Kai Havertz, so he is trying to shoe-horn him into the side because he has bought him.
“It has unbalanced them. If you asked any Arsenal fan, what their ideal midfield three would be, then it would be Thomas Partey, Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice.
“The fact that Havertz has come in, he has played him in the midfield. That has shifted Thomas Partey from midfield to right-back. That’s then put Ben White from right-back into centre-half. It’s then put Gabriel, which is a strange one to me, whether it’s a Saudi link or not, he’s not started a game in the Premier League.
“When you think that, last season, him and Saliba were incredible. Then Tomiyasu has gone to left-back because of Zinchenko’s injury. I think the fix for Thomas Partey is a pretty easy one, play Thomas Partey, Odegaard and Rice as a three. Go back to your tried and trusted back four from last season.”
Huge pressure on Havertz already
It wouldn’t be a surprise if Havertz is reading and is fully aware of what is being said about him on social media and by pundits across various platforms.
If he does, then it’s an ample opportunity for the German international to use that as fuel to shut his critics up.
This is the way football punditry is built today, play three games and everyone has already made their minds up about you, rather than waiting at least half a season for that player to be judged.
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