Arsenal midfielder Kai Havertz deployed at left-back for Germany against Turkey
Arsenal forward Kai Havertz was deployed at left-back by Germany manager Julian Nagelsmann against Turkey during their friendly on Saturday night.
The Gunners man has regularly played in midfield for the North London club and has often featured as a forward.
Havertz largely played as a number 9 while with Chelsea, and Nagelsmann believes he is also capable of playing as a full-back.
The former Bayern Munich manager told the press prior to the game why he opted to play the Arsenal man in the position.
“Kai won’t always be in this position,” Nagelsmann told RTL.
“I have a great idea, he’s an exceptionally good footballer”.
“This is a very good option. He won’t always play as a classic left-back”.
The 24-year-old will surely put his attacking prowess to use in the position and will be keen to prove that he is versatile enough to put his defensive capabilities to good use.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta will be excited to see what Havertz can do in the position and could look to deploy him there for his side if the experiment yields results with Germany.
He has struggled to impress since joining the Gunners from Chelsea in the summer, and just maybe a change in position would bring out the best in him.
Swapping positions is not new with footballers, but it is rare to see a forward become a full-back as the opposite is what is a common sight.
Bukayo Saka started his Arsenal career as a left-back before turning into a right winger due to his attacking prowess and skillset.
The Gunners are not short of options at left-back, with Oleksandr Zinchenko, Takehiro Tomiyasu and
Jakub Kiwior all available to Arteta, but Havertz could soon become an option if he proves himself capable.
He scored the opener for Germany against Turkey five minutes into the game from the position, and it will be unsurprising if he keeps featuring there once in a while going forward.
