The one Kai Havertz statistic vs Tottenham that proves why he was the perfect Arsenal transfer

Arsenal striker Kai Havertz was integral to Mikel Arteta’s side in their 1-0 North London derby win.

The Gunners arrived at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with a squad far shorter in depth than hoped.

Arteta lost first-team trio Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Riccardo Calafiori for the fixture, seeing a host of changes come into play.

Thomas Partey and Jorginho were selected to start in midfield however, it wasn’t the two midfielders who did the majority of Arsenal’s cleaning up in the middle of the park.

How Kai Havertz helped Arsenal to beat Tottenham

As a result of the absences, speculation grew regarding where Kai Havertz would play, given the German’s positional experience in a deeper role.

The 25-year-old has thrived as Arsenal’s striker in Arteta’s system although he did a lot more than just patrol the front line against Spurs.

Arteta spotted a weakness in midfield that Tottenham looked to exploit early on, which led to a slight tweak in David Raya’s approach when taking goal kicks.

Instead of playing out from the back, Raya began to kick the ball in the direction of Havertz, a switch that worked a treat for the Gunners.

Opta Analyst contributor Jonny Whitmore shared a graphic of how efficient Raya and Havertz’s partnership was in the North London derby, with only Bukayo Saka and Ben White completing more passes between them.

The goalkeeper diverted his distribution to Havertz’s direction, limiting Spurs’ ability to build play, which was a masterstroke that could not have happened without the Germany international.

Havertz is proving he was the perfect signing for Mikel Arteta

There was a lot of dissatisfaction when Arsenal signed Havertz from Chelsea last summer although the forward has very few doubters now.

A lot of Havertz’s resurgence in North London is thanks to Arteta, who has not only utilised the 25-year-old in advanced areas, but has sculpted his tactics to the German’s strengths.

Such was seen against Tottenham, as Havertz was less influential going forward, but was pivotal at winning duels and breaking up Spurs in deeper areas, something that very few players in the squad could have offered.

Signing the former Bayer Leverkusen star was a vital part of Arteta’s project, with Havertz’s role in the squad at the Emirates unique and somewhat essential to the Gunners’ set up.