Arsenal boss Unai Emery is preparing to sign a replacement from the Bundesliga for Mesut Ozil in the summer, according to a report.
Arsenal’s biggest earner Ozil has been left on the fringes by Emery since his arrival in the summer and despite publicly claiming Ozil has a future it’s understood the Spanish coach is trying to offload the £350,000-a-week midfielder.
That will leave a hole in the Gunners squad and Calciomercato report that Bayer Leverkusen playmaker Kai Havertz is on the radar of Emery.
Apparently the Gunners have been watching the 19-year-old, who has scored 11 goals and claimed six assists in 28 appearances in all competitions this season, and are ready to firm up their interest with a summer bid.
The Italian source claim Havertz has been playing just behind the forwards for Bayer and has drawn comparisons with Ozil himself, but also Real Madrid star Toni Kroos, as a result of his incisive passing.
A report from 90min in April claimed that the Gunners dispatched scouts to watch Havertz in action for Germany U19s during the international break last March.
Havertz became the youngest ever player to represent Bayer at senior level when he made his debut aged 17, and also became the club’s youngest ever scorer.
Reports last year suggested that Liverpool were closing in on a deal for the player, who had supposedly already visited the club’s Melwood training ground.
In October 2o17 Liverpool sent scouts to watch Havertz according to the Liverpool Echo, however they weren’t the only Premier League club in attendance.
Manchester United and Arsenal both sent representatives to monitor the player, who signed a new five-year deal with Leverkusen in July 2017 and is under contract until 2022.