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Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta shows why he signed Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz in friendly
Arsenal new boys Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz featured in the overnight friendly win over MLS All-Stars in Washington.
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has hailed the versatility of both Jurrien Timber and Kai Havertz after the friendly win over MLS All-Stars. The Gunners eased to a 5-0 victory in the early hours of Thursday morning, with one of the new signings on the scoresheet.
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Havertz again started on the bench after doing so for last week's 1-1 draw at Nurnberg. New club-record signing Declan Rice took his place among the substitutes and came on for the final 25 minutes.
Havertz was brought on at half-time, with Timber making his Gunners bow 20 minutes later. The pair have been slightly overshadowed by the arrival of £105million Rice last week.
However, Arteta was keen to speak glowingly of the duo in his post-match press conference. Timber can play at both right-back and in the middle of defence.
Arteta highlighted that as one of the reasons why he has brought him in from Ajax. He said: "I think you’ve seen tonight that he’s a really versatile player, you can see him defend in those positions.
"He gives you the capacity to invert, to occupy different spaces. He’s so comfortable on the ball in that phase and he’s also got this aggression in the duels and that dynamism that I really like about him.
"You saw from the first action; he went and won the ball straight away on that duel and he was ready to go. He’s been like that in the last few days – he’s playing really well with the team, and I think he’s going to be a really important player for us."
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Arsenal fans have been able to follow Havertz much more closely as a player from his three years at Chelsea. He scored the fifth goal of the game late on to wrap up a comfortable victory over the side managed by Wayne Rooney.
Attacking midfield is where Havertz has operated in his two friendly appearances so far but Arteta reckons that may change. He said: "I think, again, [versatility is] one of the main qualities he has.
"He gives us something very different with his quality and size as well, when you have to beat the press for example and use him as a target man. So, we will see – for now, he’s playing in the attacking midfield position, but I’m sure throughout the season and throughout games as well, we’re going to have the options to play him in different positions."