EXCLUSIVE: Arsenal agree Havertz contract but face £15m Chelsea challenge

Steve Kay

• 15 Jun 2023 07:06 BST
• 3 min read

Exclusive

Arsenal are pushing hard to sign Kai Havertz from Chelsea, FootballTransfers can confirm, but there still remains a sizeable gap in the valuations between the two clubs.

Reports emerged of a potential deal between the two Premier League giants on Wednesday for the 24-year-old, who has struggled to live up to his £75 million (€80m) price tag at Stamford Bridge since signing on a five-year contract from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2020.

Initially linked to Real Madrid as a replacement for Karim Benzema, Arsenal are now leading the race for Havertz, who is a player that manager Mikel Arteta has long admired.

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This is a deal that all parties want to get done – including Chelsea. The Blues are unable to make signings until they have made a sale, and they are under increasing pressure from manager Mauricio Pochettino to get players out the door so he can start bringing players in.

Havertz, meanwhile, wants Arsenal and as reported elsewhere, Arsenal want Havertz.

Former Chelsea midfielder Jorginho has been speaking to the player to sell the Emirates club to him.

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Contract already in place

FootballTransfers has been told by sources close to the deal that personal terms have already been agreed between the Gunners and the Germany international attacker, but there still remains a gulf between the clubs when it comes to agreeing a transfer fee. The gap in valuations is £15m.

It is believed that Chelsea want around £70m for the player.

Arsenal wanted Havertz when he was at Leverkusen. Arteta is a big admirer of the player and feels he would be a big asset to the squad because of his versatility, which allows him to play in a number of positions.

He can play wide right and down the middle and can, therefore, be the player who can take pressure off Gabriel Jesus and Bukayo Saka.

Arsenal and Arteta are pushing hard to get this deal done while also focusing on strengthening their midfield, where Declan Rice and Moises Caicedo remain targets.