Havertz time with us overlapped primarily with Bosz' stint as our coach and in that time we averaged probably around 60% possession or so. Maybe not as dominant as City but he still thrived in a possession system. But yeah, I would also have seen him on the RCM role but Odegaard is ahead of him and rightly so. But considering that Arteta played a left footed LCM in Xhaka and replaced him with another left footed player, I assume that is by design. I guess ödegaard is expected to drift inside a lot and the other player shall play more direct. Havertz was very versatile in that sense for us. Comfortable in tight space thanks to his shielding and good combination play but also very direct through his athleticism and a goal threat because of his ability to ghost into the box and finish with the head and both feet. So Arteta probably plans to capitalize on the latter more so than the former.
Wirtz would be terrific for them, yes, but I doubt they'll pay upwards of 100m for a position they just signed Havertz for. Plus he could be too similar to Ödegaard as both demand lots of the ball and occupy similar spaces. On the other hand, who knows how things look in 2025 which is apparently Wirtz' targeted window for his next step.
