Kai Havertz excelled as a No9 for Arsenal last season, but his days as a midfielder are not over.
The German started on the left of a midfield trio against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday night and impressed as Arsenal ran out 4-1 winners in their penultimate pre-season friendly.
Havertz set up the two opening Arsenal goals and then got in on the act himself after the break by scoring the fourth.
His goal came after he was moved up front, but it was his performance in midfield that caught the eye.
Havertz struggled in the role last season, only finding his feet when he was moved up top for the second half of the campaign.
But clearly Arteta has not given up on the idea of playing him in midfield.
Wednesday night showed why, as Havertz caused Leverkusen plenty of problems with his ability to run in behind from deep.
His link play with Gabriel Jesus, who led the line, was excellent and they also combined well with Leandro Trossard on the left flank.
“It’s something that you can see coming. It’s natural and it flows,” said Arteta. “There is good chemistry between them (Havertz and Jesus) and Leo too, because those three all have that false-nine profile. I really liked what I saw.”
Arteta was right to be pleased and the ability to play Havertz in midfield could be a valuable weapon for Arsenal this season.
The Arsenal manager wants to have multiple options in attack, so his side can be unpredictable and change the way they break teams down if one system is not working.
Havertz’s ability to switch between playing in midfield or up front - even during a game - fits perfectly with that.
There was a sense at the end of last season that the German was now an out-and-out striker, but Wednesday showed that is not the case.
