Havertz: Arsenal are stepping up in Odegaard's absence

Almost a year ago this week, Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard did something he later described as a “beautiful moment”.

With his side 2-0 up against Bournemouth and having won a penalty, the Arsenal captain handed the ball to Kai Havertz.

The German, who had taken time to settle following his big-money move from Chelsea, scored the penalty for his first Arsenal goal and then celebrated alongside his captain and the travelling fans.

Mikel Arteta praised the “empathy” and togetherness of his side in handing Havertz the opportunity to open his Arsenal account and hoped that it would “change everything for him”. Twelve months on, the German is a completely different player and person.

“I feel great, I feel very, very good. Arsenal for me is my home, I love to be here every day.” Havertz told Sky Sports News from Arsenal’s training ground.

I think that it is normal when you go from a rival in London to another club, and they pay big money for you, some people will doubt me. But I just knew my qualities, I believed in myself and obviously the manager and my team-mates helped me a lot, because it’s not always easy in those situations.

“Everyone was there for me, everyone was ready to help, and I think that’s why at one point it just started working. I think I grew up a lot, it just happens when things are not going your way, you grow up as a person and as a player as well.”

From the moment Havertz arrived at the club to the day he scored that first goal – and almost every day since – Arteta has been there playing his part in moulding Havertz into the assured and, more importantly, happy player he is today.

“If you have confidence sometimes things that don’t normally work, they work,” Havertz said. “Every time I walk onto the pitch I want to feel better than my opponent and have confidence to play my game.

“Obviously when I came here everything was quite new, I haven’t worked with a coach that puts so much work into small little details on the pitch.

“Some things were new for me and I didn’t even know they were necessary, but obviously there are lots of things. I don’t want to give away our game plan, but so many things are important and I learned that.”

So would those important Arteta conversations happen every day? “Not daily, but when one of us feels the needs to chat his door is always open. It just gives you a good feeling as a player.”

When asked if that is Arteta’s best quality as a coach, Havertz gave a wry smile: “I think he has loads, but one of his biggest strengths is the competitiveness. I think you can see it in every game, whatever the circumstances.

“Whoever you play, if it’s already 4-0 to us in the 80th minute or whatever, he wants to have everything perfect. I think that’s good for us players because there’s no time to switch off. If you do, he wakes you up quite fast.

“I think we’re all very competitive, but if you have a manager who really lives it every day, it helps you on the pitch as well to be competitive.”

Along with his manager, Odegaard’s influence on Havertz cannot be underestimated. From the moment the German international moved across London, Odegaard has made him feel welcome – one of the Arsenal family.

Havertz says him and the Norwegian are very similar characters and good friends, with the pair holidaying with each other along with their partners.

Odegaard, who picked up a bad ankle injury while away on international duty, is making good progress but when someone is so integral to the team’s success, the squad are undoubtedly missing a big presence.

“Every day he’s here, every day he’s in the meetings and speaks to us,” Havertz says of Odegaard. “I think he’s the perfect captain for a team like us, where we have so many young players and players who can progress and he’s just there for everyone and not only on the pitch.

“To be honest, before I came to Arsenal, I didn’t think he would speak so much in the dressing room and stuff like that, but he speaks a lot before the game. He’s always there on the pitch when things are not going your way and you need someone to step up.”

So who is filling that void out on the pitch? “It’s not about one player but I think everyone has to step up when one of your most important players is missing,” Havertz said. “I think we are doing it quite well at the moment.

“Some players now speak a lot in the dressing room, that helps. We hope obviously Martin comes back very quickly, but we have to do our job when he’s not there.”

Like Havertz, Raheem Sterling made the same move across London to join Arsenal in the final hours of the summer transfer window in a bid for first-team football and a new chapter in his career. It begs the question whether the winger consulted Havertz before joining Arteta’s squad.

“It’s so nice to have him back. I didn’t speak to him before he came because I didn’t even know he was coming!” said Havertz.

“I was looking on my phone and I just saw he’s close to joining Arsenal. I saw him after our game against Brighton and it was nice to see him again because I already had a good relationship with him at Chelsea.

“He’s a top-class player, he proved it so many times in the Premier League already. I think it’s great to have him here and I think he’s really going to enjoy his time here.”

It has been a pretty gruelling ten days for Havertz and Arsenal, both physically and mentally, so how do Arsenal ensure they are just as ready for Leicester at home as they were for Spurs, Atalanta and Manchester City away? For the answer this journalist doesn’t have to look too far.

The buzz words around the club those that drive the standards like ‘progress’, ‘passion’, ‘winning mentality’, ‘hunger’ and ‘belief’. So are these attributes embodied by Havertz?

“Yes I think so. To be honest, last year it showed me a lot,” he said. “When you’re so close to winning trophies it makes you even more hungry to win things.

“I’m lucky to have won one or two trophies in the past and it’s just the nicest feeling. I think we’re all so hungry to win something. The club hasn’t done it for a couple of years now, so we want to give everything to give something to the fans because they deserve it.”

After not seeing much of the ball on Sunday at Manchester City following Leandro Trossard’s red card – and a monumental defensive effort – Havertz is hoping to showcase the other side of his game against Leicester.

“It’s always a big chance of three points and that’s what we’re going for,” he said. “I think the biggest strength, obviously, of us is having the ball and sometimes having to adapt.

“Sometimes things are not going your way and still you have to stick to the game. I think that’s what a big team can do and that’s what we showed against City as well.

“Players that normally are not used to running after the ball for 60 minutes still can do it, but obviously I think it’s nicer to have the ball and that’s what we want to do on Saturday.”

Follow Arsenal vs Leicester live on Sky Sports’ digital platforms via the live blog on Saturday from 1.30pm; kick-off 3pm.

Follow the game on Soccer Saturday with Simon Thomas and the team from midday. Stream the show with a NOW TV Pass.