Arsenal have a creativity problem. It's a big creativity problem too. As they laboured to a dismal 2-1 defeat at the hands of Bournemouth on Sunday, they only generated an open play expected goals (xG) tally of 0.18.
For a team in the semi-finals of the Champions League and sat at the top of the Premier League, a lot more is expected.
Many have pointed the blame at Viktor Gyokeres this season. However, in his debut campaign for the Gunners, he still has 18 goals to his name. It would be a lot more if the system he was playing in was geared more towards generating chances.
Gyokeres-Arsenal
It says it all that Arsenal's highest assister in the Premier League this season is Declan Rice with just five. Most of his threat comes from a deal ball and not open play.
What has not helped is Martin Odegaard's injury problems and Eberechi Eze's slow start to life at the Emirates Stadium. In recent weeks, however, the main problem has been Kai Havertz's role.
Arsenal's Kai Havertz problem
Back in 2023, Arsenal signed Havertz in a mega £65m deal from Chelsea as they made an effort to replace Granit Xhaka who had departed for Bayer Leverkusen.
While that move worked out for Xhaka who went on to win the Bundesliga, for Havertz it's been a rather more complicated adventure.
Kai-Havertz-Arsenal-Luton
The German started off slowly. It took him seven games to score his first Premier League goal. He only netted once in his opening 12 league outings.
Signed as a midfielder, he simply was not up to scratch in the middle of the park. Things were not working out. It took a tactical tweak for the 26-year-old to finally hit the ground running.
Mikel Arteta trialled him as a centre forward and it worked a treat. Havertz ended the season eight goals and seven assists from 17 appearances as a striker. That £65m fee was starting to look vindicated.
Yet, over the last year, everything has unravelled for the Germany international. A hamstring injury suffered in the winter of 2025 meant he was barely seen last year. Yet, after returning, it's been something of a roller coaster.
Havertz-Arsenal-Leverkusen
That goal against Chelsea in the Carabao Cup semi-finals was something to behold but he's had to play in midfield again in recent weeks. Why Arteta has trusted him in that role is a mystery, given that it has never worked and is never likely to work.
With Eze absent in the Carabao Cup final, Havertz played as an attacking midfielder, while he also featured in that role against Southampton in the FA Cup defeat. He played as a midfielder against Bournemouth too. Three times in the last four games. Three defeats.
Kai Havertz by position at Arsenal
Position
Striker
Attacking midfield
Second striker
During that run, he has only provided one key pass and although he scored against Sporting in midweek, he did so as a striker. It is all the evidence Arteta needs that he simply cannot play the big-money German in a deeper role.
That said, with Eze and Odegaard in the picture, as well as Dowman coming through, things look bleak for Havertz. Gyokeres is clearly the first-choice striker too.
Arsenal have already signed a Havertz replacement
While Gyokeres has not enjoyed a rip-roaring debut campaign in the English capital, his performances have improved significantly. Of players in Europe's top five leagues in 2026, only Harry Kane has more goals for club and country. He's getting better.
That's certainly bad news for Havertz, whose long-term future at the Emirates does not certain. It's complicated by Dowman's emergence and could be further complicated by the arrival of Holger Quintero.
Arsenal-Gyokeres-Havertz
Who? Well, back in December, Arsenal announced they had agreed deals to sign two young players, one named Edwin Quintero and the other his twin brother, Holger.
It was a landmark move for Andrea Berta and the club. They don't often invest in talent at that age. You're usually looking at a club like Manchester City or Chelsea for that sort of move.
Yet, the Gunners know they need to get better at investing in young exciting stars and they have done just that to bring the Quintero twins to north London. Signed from Independiente del Valle in Ecuador, they come from one of the best academy systems in world football. They come from a production line that has also produced PSG's William Pacho, Chelsea's Moises Caicedo and Arsenal's Piero Hincapie.
Just 16, the Quintero twins will not be able to officially link up with their new teammates until the summer of 2027 when they turn 18. Yet, the anticipation is huge for their impending arrival.
Hincapie-Arsenal
While Edwin is a winger by trade, his brother Holger is more of an attacking midfielder and he's a classy one at that.
Described as "one of the most exciting U17s in South America" by scout Jacek Kulig, Holger looks like the real deal. In the words of fellow scout Antonio Mango, he has "such clean technique and unbelievable close-control."
Como scout Ben Mattinson describes him as a "decisive creator with a killer final ball with 1v1 prowess to take on players". While it would be daft to expect him to solve Arsenal's creativity at the drop of a hat, it bodes well for the future of the Arsenal forward line that they have invested in such a player.
He's also capable of the spectacular, as the below shows.
Havertz is unlikely to be running scared anytime soon, but in both Quintero twins, they have signed a set of generational-looking talents. Alongside Max Dowman, the aforementioned Kulig has rated Edwin as a "10/10 talent". Exciting times indeed.
Between them, they could combine to replace a number of first-team regulars in the years to come. For the likes of Havertz and Noni Madueke, they better watch out.
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