Former Chelsea star tipped to be better than Xhaka at Arsenal

Former Arsenal player, Alan Smith, has tipped the club’s summer signing Kai Havertz to be a better player than the Gunners former midfielder Granit Xhaka.

According to Smith, Havertz, who arrived at Arsenal from their rival Chelsea, is a very technical player when compared to Xhaka.

Recall that Xhaka exited Arsenal this summer transfer window to join Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen for a reported fee of €15 million.

Xhaka scored seven goals and created seven assists from 37 Premier League matches in the 2022-2023 campaign for Arsenal.

However, Havertz, who seems to be a replacement for Xhaka is yet to find his feet at the North London club.

The Germany star is yet to record a single-goal contribution after starting all four of Arsenal’s matches this season.

But Smith has thrown his weight behind Havertz, saying (via TBR): “I’m not saying it will take Havertz a season but he is just finding his feet in that squad, in that dressing room and in that first XI.

“I think he is a very good player technically, I think he can be a good player for us and I heard Arteta say he wants to be getting himself in the box at the end of things, a bit like Xhaka did last season.”

He added, “I think Havertz can be better than that as he’s got more of an attacking instinct and he is a good finisher when he gets in those positions.”