Kai Havertz has not had the easiest start to life at Arsenal. A last-gasp goal to settle a drab London derby will give his career at the Emirates a huge boost as Mikel Arteta’s men finally broke down a resolute Brentford to go top of the Premier League.
The German international’s first goal for the club in open play came in the 89th minute, 10 minutes after he had replaced Gabriel Martinelli.
It may only be a third of the way into the season, but the late winner against Brentford could be a huge psychological boost. The 1-1 draw between Manchester City and Liverpool presented Arsenal with the chance to go a point clear, but it looked like they were destined to leave without a goal until Havertz headed in the winner.
Leandro Trossard had a headed goal ruled out for offside in the first half, but Arsenal were patient and the magic moment came late on.
Arsenal were the only top-six side to win at Brentford last season and to have repeated the feat is a major test passed by Arteta’s men. After spending 248 days as leaders last season before being overtaken late on by City, they will not be getting carried away, but this felt like a significant marker laid down.
Did rusty Ramsdale show sign of nerves?
If there were any doubts as to how unforgiving top-level football can be, Ramsdale’s toe-curling performance served as a painful reminder.
This was a brutal night for him. After being bombed out of the team by Mikel Arteta in September, this was his chance to impress as on-loan goalkeeping rival David Raya was ineligible to face his parent club.
Ramsdale faced similar mocking from the home fans in the Carabao Cup fixture earlier in the season, but after 12 weeks without a league start, the home crowd made it a toxic environment from the first minute.
Every touch brought a vocal drum roll, which clearly got to him as he made two major errors that on another day would have cost two goals.
The first came in the 13th minute when he overthought with the ball at his feet and was dispossessed by Bryan Mbeumo a yard from goal. Declan Rice’s block on the line saved him, but 10 minutes before half-time there was another near calamity when he tried to throw the ball into midfield but held on too long and bounced it straight into the ground.
It made for uncomfortable viewing as Brentford fans naturally pounced on his nerves, singing “You’re just a s*** David Raya” and chanting that he was now England’s No 4 goalkeeper.
As the second half wore on, he appeared to be playing more naturally and a clean sheet, despite the shaky moments, adds to Arsenal’s league-best defensive record.
More misery for Arteta and VAR?
Arteta is not the best of friends with VAR at the moment and this game is unlikely to have changed that.
The Arsenal manager is contesting an FA misconduct charge for his outburst after Anthony Gordon’s winning goal for Newcastle this month and technology once again was not on his side as Trossard had a goal disallowed by VAR in the first half.
A cross from the left saw Gabriel Jesus’ header palmed into the air by Mark Flekken and the Belgium forward was alert to nod home from close distance.
The goal was given by Tim Robinson and the players celebrated in full, but after a delay, Trossard’s foot was judged to have been ahead of Jesus at the time of the initial ball.
Arsenal had created several half chances, but it took Havertz’s arrival to break the deadlock in the closing moments.
Is this lift-off for Havertz’s Arsenal career?
Havertz has found it difficult to nail down a position since making his £65million ($82m) move from Chelsea in the summer, but this was a much-needed big moment for him.
Gabriel Jesus started the match after returning from injury for Brazil in midweek, but Arteta threw on Eddie Nketiah and Havertz as he tried to steal the three points.
Brentford gradually sunk back into their own box and had been defending crosses and corners well until Bukayo Saka’s cross found Havertz at the back post.
Arteta pulled him over to the away fans in the corner at the final whistle so he could soak up the applause. It was a similar piece of management as when he was allowed to take a penalty against Bournemouth in September to open his league account for the club, but this was a huge goal in his own right.
What did Arteta and Arsenal say?
Arteta was thrilled to mark his 200th game with a hard-fought win after City’s draw with Liverpool. He told BBC 5Live: “When you have an opportunity to take a bite out of everybody you have to do it. I was really curious how the team was going to do. It is difficult coming to Brentford and I loved the way the team competed, how we played. How much we wanted it and we deserved to win the game.
“I love winning and we are top of the table and this is where we have to want to be. For me as well it was a special day – 200 games and I want to say thank you so much to everybody that makes my job so enjoyable.
“When you have challenges (like Havertz has had) and you have to overcome them, it makes the moments much more special. That is the reason the people reacted to him like that. It is because he is adorable and he is a joy to work with. He fully deserves more than anybody to get that win.
But Arteta refused to single out Ramsdale after he returned in place of Raya. “I am really happy with the team and the way we played — we kept the clean sheet,” he said.
Havertz was delighted with his goal, telling TNT Sport: “It feels amazing. I have been working hard for this moment and today it paid off, so I am happy to help the team with that. It was a brilliant pass from Bukayo. We work on this routine in training quite a lot. I know Bukayo and Martin (Odegaard) love to play that ball, so it was a good goal.
“Football is always hard work. Nothing comes easy. You have to work and believe. The last couple of months have been tough for me but I try to put my ego aside because the team is the most important thing.
“I am so thankful to the Arsenal fans. It is always hard when a new signing comes and they pay a lot of money for me, so they sometimes think it will go fast and easy. I am thankful for them supporting me.”
What next for Arsenal?
Wednesday, November 29: Lens (H), Champions League, 8pm GMT, 3pm ET
Revenge will be on Arsenal’s mind after they let a lead slip to lose 2-1 in France in October. A win will guarantee Arteta’s team top spot in Group B with a match to spare and they will be seeded for the next round.
Saturday, December 2: Wolverhampton Wanderers (H), Premier League, 3pm GMT, 10am ET
Arsenal have won their last four matches against Wolves at an aggregate of 10-2 since Nuno Espirito Santo’s team completed a league double in the 2020-21 season.
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(Top photo: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
