Arsenal: 3 dream signings to revolutionise Mikel Arteta era

2. Kai Havertz

In the Premier League, Arsenal have two goals from their central midfielders, one apiece from Lucas Torreira and Mesut Ozil. They also have seven assists, with only Dani Ceballos and Ozil providing more than one on the year. Put simply, the Gunners lack production from their central midfield.

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The great teams in the world spread their goals around. They might have a primary goalscorer or two — Sergio Aguero and Raheem Sterling; Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane — but they have input from around the team, in goals and assists — Kevin de Bruyne and Bernardo Silva, Roberto Firmino and the full-backs. Arsenal, in contrast, are almost entirely dependent on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette.

A productive central midfielder who can score 10-15 goals per season and add 5-10 assists per year while also impacting the game in deeper positions would be a game-changer for this team. Suddenly, Aubameyang is freed up, Lacazette’s dips in form are not as critical, and the pressure of scoring of spread throughout the team.

Across the last three Bundesliga seasons, 20-year-old Kai Havertz has played 6,901 minutes. He has 26 goals and 18 assists, yielding a direct involvement in a goal every 156.8 minutes. That is elite production. And he does not turn 21 until June. Insert Havertz and his goals into the heart of the Arsenal team and suddenly everything else looks a lot better.