Despite facing criticism from Arsenal fans, Mikel Arteta has expressed his faith in Kai Havertz's ability to make a positive contribution to the team. Havertz's performance against Fulham was met with criticism on Saturday.
There was one moment in the first half when the former Chelsea player played the ball backwards rather than moving forward, and it summed up a frustrating afternoon for Havertz, who often found himself in smart positions but was unable to make an impact.
When Arteta was asked in the post-match interview if he was concerned Arsenal supporters might turn against Havertz, he played it down and said: “I don’t worry about it. I think if we give him time, he’ll come good.”
“No, I saw an action when he played backwards and he could have turned. That’s more I think the demands of everybody to play forward and to impact the game in the final third because we had the urgency to win,” Arteta said.
On whether he can win over the fans, he continued: “Yes I think so. I think he’s done already really good things. Today it was tough in certain moments. He got in great areas and the ball didn’t arrive. In a lot of situations, he should have scored a lot of goals already this season. That’s the thing that is missing there.”
