Kai Havertz has suffered a serious hamstring injury that threatens him to put him aside for the rest of the season, CBS Sports understands. Arsenal flew back on Tuesday from their training camp for warm weather in Dubai for Havertz to undergo tests that have confirmed their worst possible fears. Van Mikel Arteta is now expected to be without a recognized striker for the rest of the season.
Havertz is supposed to have sustained the injury in the training earlier this week, with scans on Arsenal’s return to London and offers an indication of the pure seriousness of the problem, which is a hammer bladder for the Gunners in the aftermath of a transfer window in January No reinforcements were made to an injury passed front line.
With Gabriel Jesus in the following season after the knee operation, the burden will fall on a small group of players to try to keep Arsenal alive in the race for the Premier League and Champions League. For the coming weeks, that group can only count at least three: Leandro Trossard, Raheem Sterling and Ethan Nwaneri. Gabriel Martinelli sustained a suspected hamstring injury last week in the EFL Cup semi -final defeat against Newcastle and although the return of Bukayo Saka in Dubai in Dubai was welcome news it is still expected to be on his way next month.
The immediate question for Arteta will be how best to build a front line made from two natural left wings and a 17 -year -old who started the season as the understudy of Martin Odegaard in the central midfield. Since then, Arteta has talked about the possibility that Nwaneri is developing into a number nine, while Trossard was often filled in that position during his first half season in Arsenal. Sterling could also lead the line, although simply removing satisfactory versions from him in every position, this season has been a fight for Arsenal.
Apart from that, Academy Forward Nathan Butler-Youedeji, 22, is a frequent presence on the first team bench in the midst of the recent crisis of figures. Arsenal could also explore a free agent market with, among others, Diego Costa, Mariano Diaz and Carlos Vela.
Havertz’s injury sheds a hard light on the transfer activities of Arsenal in the last two windows. They both intended to add depth and quality to the forward line of Arteta, but their only addition was Sterling as a deadline daily loan in August. That deal – plus a failed striving for a permanent understudy for David Raya who forced them to take Bournemouth’s Neto on loan – meant that Arsenal was unable to make further loan additions from Premier League clubs in January, with an offer of £ 40 million for Ollie Watkins was rejected.
Arsenal has not been able to secure primary goals, including Athletic Bilbao’s Nico Williams, Benjamin Sesko of RB Leipzig and Alexander Isak, the striker she put on the sword in the EFL Cup, and concluded that a signing for the Sake of Sake of it wasn’t the sake there. Correct approach in the middle season window. They will now wonder whether it might have helped to illuminate part of the load on Havertz, which last week played the full 90 minutes against Newcastle with the draw long since lost.
In all competitions, the German International this season played the most minutes of a Premier League Center Froward, a statistics that was all the more remarkable as Overtz had knee problems in October and had an attack of illness during the Christmas period. Although Arteta has praised the genetic “powerhouse” that leads his line, he has visibly struggled for energy for energy in recent weeks and has fallen exhaustion on the floor after 10 men defeated Arsenal Wolverhampton.