Former Chelsea midfielder Craig Burley has slammed Kai Havertz.
Burley was unimpressed by Havertz in Arsenal’s 2-2 draw with Fulham.
Burley said on ESPN: “We could just sit here and say that’s massaging a player who’s low in confidence, because he still is. This talk from Arteta is nonsense.
“There’s one in the second half where the crowd got on his back, somebody played a beautiful little ball into him, sixty yards from goal, he had 10 yards to turn because no defender had got tight to him and he passed it back 15 yards and gave it away.
“There is nothing in this Kai Havertz performance or performances that suggest that this player is any different, not one iota from the player who was performing for Chelsea. The only difference is he’s wearing a red shirt.
“He’s still got no confidence, he’s still not influencing games, he’s still giving the ball away, he’s still not getting in the right positions at the right time. He made one or two good runs in the first half.
“But at the moment, there’s a £70m burning problem in Arteta’s pocket, because, in my opinion, he’s going to have to drop him. Arsenal are a better side without him in the team.
“And [Leandro] Trossard. But Havertz is the elephant in the room because he was big money and he arrived from Chelsea. If Mikel Arteta wants to put Arsenal’s best XI on the field next time they play, it involves Kai Havertz being on the bench.
“He’s not gained his confidence back, we’ve not seen anything different from him. In fact he’s a passenger at the moment in this Arsenal side.”
