Арсенал өөрийн талбайдаа Челсиг 2-1 харьцаатай буулган авсан тоглолтод Кай Хавертцын тактикийн шийдвэрүүд чухал үүрэг гүйцэтгэлээ.
Ням гарагт болсон тоглолтод Кай Хавертц 25 дахь минутад тооны харьцааг тэнцүүлсэн гоолыг оруулж, улмаар Мартин Эдегорын ялалтын гоол дээр оновчтой хуурамч хөдөлгөөн хийж багийнхаа гурван оноог авахад үнэтэй хувь нэмэр оруулсан юм. Түүний талбайн баруун хэсэгт тогтмол шилжин тоглож, өрсөлдөгчийнхөө хамгаалалтыг сарниулж буй тактик нь Арсеналын довтолгооны гол хөзөр болж байна.
Хавертц тоглолтын туршид Челсигийн хамгаалагчид болох Уэсли Фофана болон Жоррел Хато нарын байрлалыг алдагдуулж, багийн нөхөд болох Букаё Сака, Мартин Эдегор, Бен Уайт нартай хоршин тоглохдоо тун үр дүнтэй байлаа. Ялангуяа тэрээр төвөөс баруун жигүүр рүү шилжин, хамгаалалтын шугамын ард гарч ирж буй нь өрсөлдөгчийн төвийн хамгаалагчдыг байрлалаа алдахад хүргэж байв.
Арсеналын дасгалжуулагч Микель Артета өнгөрсөн улиралд Хавертцыг өөр өөр байрлалд тоглох чадвартай, багийн бусад тоглогчидтой ойлголцох тал дээр өвөрмөц онцлогтой тоглогч хэмээн тодорхойлж байсан юм. Энэхүү олон талт чанар нь 2026-27 оны улирлын эхэн үеэс эхлэн талбайн баруун хэсэгт илүү тод харагдаж, Арсеналын довтолгооны хувилбаруудыг улам баяжуулж байна.
Дэлгэрэнгүйг эх сурвалжаас харах
↓Эх сурвалжийг нээх ↓
The sheer beauty of pulling off a score-altering dummy in a football game will always grab fans’ attention.
So the quick thinking from Kai Havertz to set up Martin Odegaard’s winner in Arsenal’s 2-1 defeat of Chelsea on Sunday understandably got more airtime than his own first-half goal from the edge of the penalty box, which made it 1-1.
Perfectly in sync 🔗 pic.twitter.com/UxvmNkDydX
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) September 7, 2026
Yet, the German’s strike was the culmination of his efforts to consistently overload Arsenal’s right wing, something that was vitally important in them taking the three points.
This type of movement isn’t new to Havertz, who has done it in previous seasons and has been consistently operating on the right side in these early weeks of 2026-27, as seen below.
Even if Xabi Alonso’s visiting side were aware of how dangerous this made their opponents, they couldn’t stop it because of the timing of Havertz’s movement and his chemistry with the rest of Arsenal’s right-side personnel.
In the example below, from the game’s opening minutes, Havertz is positioned between Maxence Lacroix, at the heart of Chelsea’s back three, and their left centre-back, Wesley Fofana, as Riccardo Calafiori comes across the pitch from his left-back position and attacks the space between the lines.
Havertz knows that Fofana has to keep an eye on Calafiori, and makes a run in behind him as Ezri Konsa plays the ball to Ben White. The timing of Havertz’s movement allows him to push into this area before Lacroix can shift across to cover.
White finds his centre-forward, and from this move Arsenal win a dangerous free kick. It’s also important to note how Havertz’s run has created space for Calafiori to attack before he is brought down.
In another example, Havertz roams to the touchline and Bukayo Saka moves inside, forcing Fofana and left wing-back Jorrel Hato to exchange positions.
As Arsenal circulate the ball to Calafiori, Havertz moves inside again, but positions himself on Fofana’s blindside.
When Hato spots Calafiori’s pass to Havertz, he commits to the ball. Meanwhile, Saka attacks the space the Dutchman is vacating. Hato gets close to winning back possession but Havertz’s touch as he is falling helps Odegaard put Saka through on goal and he manages a shot on target.
Havertz’s constant roaming onto Arsenal’s right wing manipulated the left side of Chelsea’s defence and confused Fofana and Hato.
In the build-up to his 25th-minute equaliser, he dashes into the space behind Hato as Declan Rice hits a ball wide to Saka. When Saka plays it back to White, Havertz holds his position, with Fofana unsure whether to follow the centre-forward or return to his zone.
Chelsea’s left centre-back takes only a couple of steps infield, but the speed of Arsenal’s build-up catches him out — White’s ball to Rice is followed by a one-touch pass to Havertz, who smartly hops to the left to stay onside.
He then dribbles past Fofana at the edge of the box, before striking the ball into the bottom corner.
What makes Havertz’s roams towards the right wing lethal isn’t only the combinations with Saka, Odegaard and White, but also the fact he can attack the defensive line from a vantage point when Arsenal move the ball back inside.
This puts the opponents in a situation where they can’t keep their eye on the ball and Havertz at the same time, while being unsure whether to follow the centre-forward or return to defend their positions because Arsenal are attacking the central area.
Havertz’s movement against Chelsea was a key factor in Arsenal’s win (Adrian Dennis/AFP via Getty Images)
In the second half, Havertz’s movement continued to create space for his team-mates, especially Saka.
Here, he starts centrally and moves towards the right to combine with the England winger.
Havertz’s movement attracts Romeo Lavia, and with Chelsea’s other midfielder, Reece James, away from the centre of the pitch, this opens up a gap in front of the penalty box.
He then plays a one-two with Saka, who attacks this area, but the winger’s eventual shot is blocked by Lacroix.
In yet another example, Havertz is initially positioned between Lacroix and Fofana, before dropping in front of the latter to provide Odegaard with a passing option.
Saka spots this movement and attacks the space behind Fofana, who is moving up towards the Arsenal centre-forward.
Odegaard’s pass is then flicked by Havertz through Fofana’s legs into the path of Saka, whose curled shot is saved by Emiliano Martinez.
When Mikel Arteta was asked last season what his team missed in the injured Havertz’s absence, the Arsenal manager pointed out his versatility and threat from different positions because “he is a unique player in the areas he can occupy and the way he gets associated with all the players”.
These two characteristics are the main strengths of Havertz’s moves towards the right wing, which further empowers that side of Arsenal’s attack, as seen in yesterday’s win.
The attractiveness of his dummy on the winning goal will rightly be the icing on the cake, but there is a different kind of beauty in his right-sided roaming.
