Ok, so, I think we know we have at least one guy coming back from the two sets of internationals, not broken, as Kai Havertz came off at halftime yesterday evening, having scored a penalty right on the strike of the half to put Germany one-up in Stuttgart.
Phew.
With him returning, having played an hour in the first game and 45 in the second, one would hope that you could chalk this _Interlull_ up as a very positive one that has put minutes in the legs without beasting our hybrid midfielder/forward. It means he can make the relatively short flight back home today, maybe have a rest tomorrow, then get back in training on Thursday and Friday and be ready for selection on Saturday against Southampton.
I’m not sure whether he’ll start, though. If we’re thinking about the matches that lie ahead for us, I think Havertz getting some minutes, but not starting against Southampton, makes sense. Perhaps he comes on as a second-half sub and does 20 minutes or so. This is a guy who returned from a year out earlier this calendar year, played a couple of matches, then broke down again, so I suspect Arteta and the medical team will be acutely aware of this and the need to build him up. He’s played 14 times this season and has just 524 minutes to his name for Arsenal, with his recent performances being:
* 66 minutes against Man City in the League Cup
* 21 minutes against Leverkusen in the Champions League at home
* 61 minutes against Everton in the Premier League
* 16 minutes against Leverkusen away in the Champions League
* 62 minutes against Mansfield in the FA Cup
From those numbers, you can clearly see that the club has been very carefully managing Havertz’s minutes. There’s been a clear pattern that has developed. It does make me wonder, though: _When will they feel he’s ready for 90-minutes?_
Arteta was very vocal in his praise for Havertz just over a year ago, describing him as a ‘[powerhouse](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cly5rvvj0dno).’ The football gods saw fit to absolutely make him eat those words, because it was literally a day or two later that he picked up that injury which basically kept him out of the team for the rest of last season. Since then, his ‘robustness’, as Arteta put it, has been blown away by all of these injuries he’s picked up. It means that Arsenal inevitably have to be careful with him, but there must come a point soon at which he’s asked to play a full 90.
If I were to guess, I would posit the theory that they are building him up for that City game. He’s just played an hour for Germany and then 45 minutes. That’s two in a short time frame, and certainly, when you look at the numbers above, it is more than he’s been playing with Arsenal within a week since returning from injury. That’s why I think he will be used sparingly against Southampton, maybe as a sub, with the idea of him being built up to play in the Bournemouth and City game. It’s just a hunch, but I get the feeling that Gabby Jesus is told to start against Southampton and see if he’s still got something to give for us against a Championship opponent, then Big Vik is told to start the two legs against Sporting, in the hope that Arteta leans into the ‘vibes’ like he did with Eze and the Scum. Then, for Bournemouth at home and City away, either side of the Sporting home game, Havertz is the man. I’m projecting, of course, there’s no way it will pan out exactly like this, but I am imagining him playing around the 70-80-minute mark against Bournemouth, then also doing similar numbers against City a week later.
And I think that seems like a very sensible thing to do.
Elsewhere, Thomas Tuchel had his press conference yesterday ahead of England’s meaningless friendly against Japan, and he clarified the situation with Rice and Saka. Unsurprisingly, it is those two who are getting heat from certain members of the gutter press, and Tuchel was pressed on it yesterday, for which I was pleased that he spoke out about the fact that both had been sent home. Both wanted to play; both were disappointed not to be able to; but the interests of player welfare by an England manager have been taken into account, unlike the previous incumbents of that role. He also used his words very carefully, being very deliberate in describing the Saka and Rice situation as ‘narrative’. Because that’s what this has been since they were sent home; we’ve all known they’ve been in the fabled ‘red zone’ for a while, but there are corners of the British press who hunt for stories and mischief-making angles, regardless of the reality. The reality is that the England manager has realised there is no benefit in risking these players breaking down with a few months of the season to go, so playing them in a meaningless friendly and risking a fatigue injury that could keep them out for a few months benefits absolutely nobody.
I do think the Noni Madueke situation probably strengthened Arsenal’s hand a little in telling the England camp that it might be best to return. Thankfully, Tuchel confirmed yesterday that it doesn’t seem that bad, and we got a [HandOfArsenal message on the socials](https://x.com/HandofArsenal/status/2038709279025242378?s=20) last night that also confirmed it. Apparently, he’s aiming for Sporting/Bournemouth and given one’s first thought when they see a player in a knee brace after the game is that his season is ‘done’, this is a real bonus. Eze too, in that same message, was thought to be hopeful he could return earlier than is expected. I suspect they’ll be looking to see if they can have him ready to play a part in the City game, and if that is the case, then that too is a bit of a bonus. I don wonder if that means that Odegaard might get more minutes this weekend coming that I originally thought, but let’s save that prep for the Easter weekend countdown.
For now, I will bid you _adieu_ for the day, and I’ll be back tomorrow as we start to look ahead at that Southampton match up and hopefully the healthy return of those players still with their respective international teams.
Laters peeps.