Even though Arsenal signed Gyokeres, Havertz is still the man for the big games and he proved it once again in the UCL final vs PSG.
For the past two seasons, one of the most common criticisms directed at Arsenal has been that they lack a proper striker.
Every transfer window seems to bring fresh calls for the club to spend big on a new No. 9, and every dropped point is often followed by renewed debates about whether Mikel Arteta’s side can truly compete without a traditional goalscorer.
Yet Kai Havertz’s performance in the Champions League final against PSG offered a reminder of why that narrative is often too simplistic. In the biggest game of the season, on the biggest stage in club football, it was Havertz who stepped forward and delivered. The German opened the scoring for Arsenal and once again showed why Arteta continues to trust him in crucial matches.
A powerful front-post finish from Havertz ⚽@Heineken | #UCLGOTD pic.twitter.com/TsQdb0h373
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) May 30, 2026
This is not an isolated incident either. Havertz has now scored in Champions League finals for two different clubs, having also netted the winning goal for Chelsea in the 2021 final. That is an incredibly exclusive club to belong to and highlights a quality that cannot always be measured through league goal totals alone: the ability to perform when the pressure is at its highest.
IF IT’S A CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL, KAI HAVERTZ DELIVERS 😱🏆
He’s now 2-for-2 in UCL Finals!
Arsenal stun PSG and lead 1-0 in Budapest! 🔴⚪🔥 #UCL pic.twitter.com/Ngum8JIe6K— DAZN Football (@DAZNFootball) May 30, 2026
The criticism of Arsenal’s attack often ignores how Arteta wants his team to function. Unlike teams built around a penalty-box poacher, Arsenal’s attacking structure is fluid. Goals come from multiple sources. Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Trossard, and others all contribute.
The striker is expected to do more than simply finish chances. He must press, link play, create space, and bring others into the game. Havertz excels in those areas.
Gyokeres came into Arteta’s Arsenal this season as the primed striker they had been waiting for, but his impact hasn’t been the stuff of dreams. Although he recorded 20 goals and 3 assists, the fact that he had that number in 53 appearances put a small question mark on his overall play.
Towards the end of the season, he was trying to get into the attacking play and build up with the team, using his strength to ward off defenders and even bully them but for most part of the season, Gyokeres was absent, even though he was on the field.
He found more favour when he played bottom-level teams than the big boys, and in these big games, Havertz somehow did more than the marquee striker.
In the UCL final, you would expect Arteta to pick his new striker, but instead, Havertz was the go-to man. Against PSG, Havertz looked comfortable under pressure, made intelligent runs, and took his goal with conviction, offering more than Gyokeres did in his short cameo.
Arsenal have bought Gyokeres and will need him to come correct while he stays at the club but Havertz has shown that he can bring the attack to life and help them create better chances, while converting his own.
Should Arsenal find another striker, not at all. Instead, they will need to play to Gyokeres’s tune or make him feel part of the build-up play more while counting on his elite finishing to deliver the goals. However, should Gyokeres fail to deliver when it matter, Kai Havertz has shown that he remains one of the first names Arteta can trust when the stakes are at their highest.
