Kai Havertz
Country: Germany
Club: Arsenal FC
Position: Striker
Age: 27
League: Premier League
Major Honours: 1 X Premier League (Arsenal FC), 1 X UEFA Champions League (Chelsea FC)
Club History: Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Chelsea FC, Arsenal FC
“We’ve had many good players through the history of the club at Bayer Leverkusen, but Kai Havertz is the best of them all.” - Rudi Voller
Bradley Collyer | Alamy
Kai started playing football at 4 years old, at Alemannia Mariadorf where his grandfather helped develop him as a player, growing up he admired players such as Toni Kroos, Ronaldinho, Iniesta, Zidane and Kaka, taking inspiration from their style and composure on the ball. His grandfather, a key figure at the club, watched over his development as the young Kai spent countless hours honing his technique against older players. While others relied on speed and strength, Havertz stood out for his calmness. Even as a child, he seemed to have more time on the ball than everyone else. Scouts soon spotted this.
How a boy from germany became the king of london
“He can decide games with his brain.”
- Dirk Morfeld ( Youth coach at Alemannia Mariadorf)
At ten years old, he joined Alemannia Aachen, which was the biggest club in the region. The step up was significant, but Havertz adapted quickly. Coaches were captivated by his intelligence, technical ability, and maturity. He wasn’t the loudest player in the dressing room, but he was often the smartest on the pitch. In 2010, Bayer Leverkusen came calling. One of Germany’s finest academies had spotted a gem. For a young boy who had grown up dreaming of professional football, it was the opportunity of a lifetime.
Leaving home comforts behind, Havertz entered a world where every player was considered a future star. Yet even among elite prospects, he stood apart. Taller than most midfielders and blessed with remarkable technique, he developed into one of the academy’s brightest talents. In October 2016, at just seventeen years old, Kai Havertz made his Bundesliga debut for Bayer Leverkusen, becoming the club’s youngest ever Bundesliga player at the time. Now that he was playing professionally, he wanted to drop out of his University entrance exams. However a coach encouraged him that he should complete his exams as a test of willpower.
”At 17 you don't think you need school anymore. At that age you also don't think about injuries or how things can suddenly take a completely different turn.”
He soon became Leverkusen’s youngest Bundesliga goalscorer. While many young talents struggle with the jump to senior football, Havertz seemed completely at home. The bigger the stage became, the calmer he looked. By the age of 18, he was already a regular starter. By 19, he was one of the Bundesliga’s brightest stars. His height combined with his technical ability and football brain made him a unique player, not often seen in football.
“Kai reminds me of a combination of Michael Ballack and Mesut Ozil.” - Rudi Voller
The 18/19 season transformed him from promising youngster into one of Europe’s most sought-after players. Havertz scored 20 goals in all competitions, becoming the youngest player in Bundesliga history to reach milestones of 50 and then 75 league appearances. Europe began to take notice. Scouts from the continent’s biggest clubs filled stadiums whenever Leverkusen played.
A new challenge
By the summer of 2020, Kai Havertz had become one of the most sought-after players in world football. Europe’s biggest clubs wanted him. Bayern Munich admired him. Real Madrid monitored him. Manchester City watched him closely. But it was Chelsea who moved first.
Fresh from securing Champions League qualification under Frank Lampard, the London club saw Havertz as the centrepiece of a new generation. After years of development at Bayer Leverkusen, the German arrived in England carrying enormous expectations and a price tag of more than £70 million.
For many young players, the move would have been straightforward.For Havertz, it was anything but. The world was still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Football stadiums sat empty. The Premier League’s intensity was unlike anything he had experienced in Germany. Just months after arriving, Havertz contracted COVID-19 himself, interrupting his first season in England. Criticism followed. Every touch, every missed chance and every quiet performance was analysed. Some questioned whether Chelsea had overpaid. Others wondered whether the Bundesliga star could ever adapt to English football.
Yet through the noise, Havertz remained the same player he had always been. As Chelsea’s season progressed, he slowly began to show flashes of the player who had dazzled Germany. Then came the night that changed everything. 29 May 2021 the Champions League Final. Chelsea vs Manchester City. In the biggest game of his career, Havertz produced the defining moment. Racing through on goal before rounding Ederson, he calmly rolled the ball into an empty net to score the only goal of the match.
Chelsea were champions of Europe. The player who had been questioned during his first months in England had written himself into Chelsea history forever. More trophies followed. The UEFA Super Cup. The FIFA Club World Cup. Havertz scored decisive goals in both competitions, becoming the man for the biggest occasions. Yet despite the silverware, his Chelsea career never truly settled.
One week he was a midfielder. The next he was a striker. Then a false nine. Then an attacking midfielder again. While moments of brilliance continued to appear, consistency became difficult to find. Chelsea’s instability mirrored Havertz’s own journey through the club. There were flashes of genius, memorable goals and major trophies, but there was also a feeling that his best position had never fully been discovered. By 2023, both player and club stood at a crossroads. Three years earlier, Chelsea had signed one of Europe’s brightest young stars.
Now, after lifting the Champions League and scoring some of the most important goals in the club’s modern history, Kai Havertz was preparing for a new challenge. His next destination would shock English football.
From west to north
Arsenal have a history of signing players from their London rivals Chelsea, often the case was when a player was nearing the end of their career such as Willian, Jorginho, Cech and David Luiz in previous seasons. This one was different. Kai Havertz was young, he had not yet reached the prime of his career. This wasn't a normal sale, it was a statement of intent.
Kai Havertz was attending the wedding of Kepa (who later signed for the gunners in 2025), he was spending a lot of time with Jorginho who had joined Arsenal 6 months before. Later he was pictured hiding in the bushes wearing the 23/24 Arsenal home kit ready for his shock transfer to the North of London. A London coup was taking place under the very noses of the attending Chelsea squad.
When Arsenal announced the signing of Kai Havertz in the summer of 2023, the reaction was mixed. After three years at Chelsea, Havertz arrived in North London carrying a Champions League winner’s medal but also the weight of expectations that had never fully disappeared. To many outsiders, Arsenal were taking a gamble. Mikel Arteta saw something different. He saw the player who had dominated football in Germany after dazzling at Bayer Leverkusen.
Most importantly, he saw a footballer whose best years were still ahead of him. The beginning was difficult. Every misplaced pass was criticised. Every missed chance became a headline. Comparisons were constant. Questions grew louder with each passing week. Yet inside Arsenal’s dressing room, belief never wavered. Arteta continued to trust him.
His Arsenal career truly lifted off at Bournemouth, Arsenal had won a penalty but instead of Martin Odegaard taking it, he passed the ball to Kai Havertz so that he could score his first Arsenal goal. That was the first of many.
The confidence returned. The player Arsenal thought they had signed finally began to emerge. As the 2023-24 season progressed, Havertz became one of Arsenal’s most important players. Whether operating in midfield or leading the line, he provided intelligence, movement and composure. More importantly, he delivered when pressure was highest. The Emirates Stadium began to witness a transformation.
And then came the next step. By the 2024-25 season, Havertz was no longer viewed as a project or a risk. He was one of Arsenal’s leaders. His versatility allowed Arteta to reshape games. His work ethic made him indispensable. After a season plagued by injury Kai returned to the Arsenal lineup at the end of their 25/26 title winning season to score the goal against Burnley that clinched the title. He even started and scored the opener in the UCL final although on this occasion it was not to be. In North London, his story was still being written.
The uncertainty that followed his arrival was replaced by appreciation. Fans who had doubted him started singing his name. The player many believed didn’t fit Arsenal had become a crucial part of one of the Premier League’s strongest teams.
MB Media Solutions | Alamy
Kai represented Germany at EURO 2020, the 2022 World cup and EURO 2024, he played many positions for Germany including on one occasion, at left back. He scored after 5 minutes nonetheless. He has become one of Germany's most reliable goal scorers and the face of the German national team. He kicked off the 2026 World cup with a brace against Curacao
Written by Miles Waldock