BELIEVE it or not, there ARE similarities between Kai Havertz and Dennis Bergkamp.
Arsenal legend and three-time Prem winner Bergkamp was heavily criticised upon signing for the club on June 21, 1995 – taking seven league games to score his first goal.
Havertz – a £65m buy from Chelsea on June 28, 2023 – was considered by some a waste of money after he took 10 games in all competitions to open his account in North London.
Their positions too. Bergkamp was never considered a conventional goal-getting No.9, while Havertz has so far under Mikel Arteta been used as a central striker, No.10 and marauding midfielder.
And importantly, for all of the flair and beauty, aggression and physicality, their influence on their respective Arsenal teams is undeniable, regardless of goals.
Deemed one of the club’s and Prem’s all-time greats, Dutch master Bergkamp never scored more than 16 goals in a single league season for the Gunners.
As an integral, world class cog in Arsene Wenger’s Invincible side of 2003/04, he scored just four Prem goals, alongside seven assists for the likes of Thierry Henry and Robert Pires.
On the hunt for a first league title since then, Havertz notched 13 Prem goals and seven assists in his debut season as Arteta’s men finished two points behind champions Manchester City.
Havertz already has four goals and one assist in eight games this term after a fine start solely as a No.9, while his influence on those around him grows by the week.
And ahead of a blockbuster title clash against Liverpool, Jeremie Aliadiere – a member of the Invincibles and ex-teammate of Bergkamp – told SunSport: “I don’t rely on [Havertz] scoring goals.
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“The team shares goals from everywhere, and as long as you keep winning games, that’s all that matters. Do you always need an Erling Haaland scoring 20 to 30 goals a season?
“You can share it around and still win a Premier League title. I would never judge Havertz on a minimum number of goals because he brings so much more than that to the team.”
More often than not right now, when Havertz gets a chance, he takes it – recently on a run of scoring in seven successive home games – while continuing to drive others forward with a cuteness and technical brilliance under pressure.
The German international’s 6ft 4in frame sees him dominate duels in the air, his work rate off the ball is relentless and he has recently revealed he has started to “enjoy” physical battles.
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Bergkamp – occasionally nicknamed ‘Dirty Den’ during his 11-year Arsenal stint – also had a mean streak to him that paved the way for others to grab the headlines.
Frenchman Aliadiere – who made 51 appearances for the club between 2001 and 2007 – continued: “I see [the similarities]. Dennis could play anywhere.
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“He was a magician, the best footballing brain I have ever seen. He saw things and could read the game quicker than anybody and saw things no one else could. He was the ‘Iceman’.
“You would try to copy him in training and it was impossible. He was on a different level, feeding the likes of Henry, Pires, Freddie Ljungberg. He was the conductor, the chief.
“I must say, I was not convinced of Havertz initially as a No.9, maybe not sharp or quick enough, but like Dennis, he is not a typical player.
“A big lad who holds the ball well and his intelligence and selflessness to get Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Martin Odegaard involved.
“When you start to feel important in the team, not wondering if you’re going to start, suddenly the confidence grows and he is playing like he has never played before.
“He’s slowly becoming a major part of Arsenal’s history and hopefully it is a winning season.”
All that is missing is the “aura” that comes from lifting titles and being recognised as one of the world’s best – something a 16-year-old Aliadiere experienced first-hand with Bergkamp.
Speaking on behalf of William Hill Vegas, Aliadiere explained: “As a young boy joining the club, the first six months being in the first team, [Bergkamp] never spoke to me. He barely said hello in the morning.
“I thought: ‘Oh god, he doesn’t like me’. It made me even more anxious and scared in training, but after that he suddenly completely changed. He accepted me.
“He wanted to see if I was good enough to be around him. He had such an aura around him. You couldn’t get his friendship just like that. You had to earn it.”
