Jamie Carragher has warned Viktor Gyokeres that he will never replace Kai Havertz in Arsenal's starting line-up, following the Sweden international's underwhelming cameo in the Gunners' 2-1 victory over Chelsea.
Mikel Arteta's side maintained their perfect start to the season with a hard-fought win at the Emirates Stadium, where they conceded for the first time in three games when Morgan Rogers volleyed home inside two minutes. Kai Havertz equalised against his former club before Martin Odegaard scored the winner just after half-time.
Gyokeres struggles on debut appearance
Havertz started his third consecutive game before being replaced by Gyokeres, who got his first minutes of the new campaign as a 78th-minute substitute. The £64m striker struggled to make an impact as Chelsea pressed for an equaliser, twice giving the ball away, much to the frustration of the Arsenal faithful.
Speaking on Sky Sports, Carragher heaped praise on Havertz and said Gyokeres would 'never' force the German out of Arteta's first-choice line-up.
'To displace Kai Havertz out this team, you're talking about one of the best players in the world, that's what you have to get,' Carragher said. 'It has to be an Ian Wright, guaranteed 30 goals a season, a Thierry Henry. Gyokeres is never taking Havertz's place, not ever. Morgan Rogers I'm not sure [would have], as well.'
Carragher explains Havertz's value
Carragher argued that Havertz's contribution goes beyond goals, highlighting his defensive work and pressing from the front.
'It's not about how good they are just in attack, it's what they give you for the team. One of the reasons why you can't break Arsenal down as a team is how well they press from the front,' he said.
'But then when the opposition get through that, they all get behind the ball, and Havertz is about 25, 30 yards from his goal. You go and ask a world-class striker to do that, a guy who's obsessed with his numbers and his goals to come back and do that, he won't do that.'
Carragher compared Havertz to Roberto Firmino's role at Liverpool, saying: 'Havertz is more of a facilitator, he's not a great goalscorer, can [Bukayo] Saka or the wide players get more goals the way [Mohamed] Salah and [Sadio] Mane used to with Bobby Firmino in that position. They're not both great goalscorers, but they bring an awful lot to the team.'
He added: 'Mikel Arteta, the type of manager that he is, taking Havertz out of that team and what he does for that team defensively, we talk about how strong they are defensively, no-one can get a shot on target, it's not just the goalkeeper and the back four, that's the whole team. So he'd be giving up on, actually, some of his team's defensive solidity, to add a little bit more in the attack, that's the decision every manager has to take.'
Arteta backs Havertz
Arsenal boss Arteta also praised Havertz after the Gunners reclaimed top spot alongside Manchester City, who also boast a perfect record after three games.
'He looks happy, he looks settled and some great things have happened in his personal life as well,' Arteta said. 'He feels fit, he's training every day and has this routine right now. He's scoring goals, but not only that – he's also doing amazing work for the team.'
