Mikel Arteta marked his return to the Arsenal dugout in a commanding 2-0 victory against Brighton, courtesy of Kai Havertz late strike. The Arsenal boss who was absent in the previous 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa, having accumulated three yellow cards, wasted no time getting back in the referee’s notebook again. Recall Arteta’s yellow card tally includes cautions for protesting during draws against Fulham and Chelsea and an over-celebration incident during the match against Luton. Meanwhile, the Seagulls faced Arteta’s frustration as he protested multiple fouls on Bukayo Saka, with no corresponding bookings for Brighton players. 
Gabriel Jesus opened scoring, before Kai Havertz sealed the win – Getty image However, Arsenal found their breakthrough in the second half, with Gabriel Jesus heading home from a corner. The match remained heavily one-sided, and Kai Havertz secured the victory by slotting into the bottom corner in the 87th minute, marking his fifth goal of the campaign.
Kai Havertz in Chelsea’s home jersey. Source: Getty The clubs have also reached an agreement in principle that will allow the player to have a medical. Havertz would be Arsenal’s second-most expensive signing after they paid a club-record fee of around 72 million pounds for Ivory Coast forward Nicolas Pepe in 2019. Germany international Havertz was signed by Chelsea on a five-year contract in 2020 for around 71 million pounds after two prolific seasons with Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen. At Chelsea, he won the Champions League in his first season, scoring the winner in the 2021 final against Manchester City. Played in several positions in the front line and midfield, Havertz scored 14 goals in the 2021-22 campaign but he netted only nine times last season as Chelsea struggled to score under three different managers and finished 12th in the table. 
Arsenal’s coach, Mikel Arteta. Source: Getty Chelsea are looking to offload players ahead of next season after spending over 600 million euros ($655.74 million) on new signings since they were bought last year by an investment group led by American businessman Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital. They’ve also agreed to £30m deal with Manchester City for Croatia midfielder Mateo Kovacic, 29. Another midfielder, France international N’Golo Kante, 32, has agreed to sign for Saudi Arabian champions Al-Ittihad when his contract expires at the end of June. Arsenal finished second champions Manchester City and have qualified for the Champions League for the first time since the 2016-17 campaign. The north London club are also looking to strengthen their midfield with West Ham United’s Declan Rice among their main targets. 
Havertz started Germany’s friendly against Peru days ago, setting up one goal and missing a second-half penalty in a 2-0 win. 
The penalty itself drew controversy after Marius Wolf was penalized for handball despite having it kicked towards him at point-blank range. There was also another debate after Havertz was allowed to retake the penalty after it was adjudged that Salih Ozcan had encroached before the German kicked the ball. Speaking to BT Sport after the game, Bellingham said; 
“From where I was, it was pretty close and I’m not sure what more he can do with the hands. I don’t want to get in trouble, I’ve paid enough to them lot. That was disappointing and the fact they’ve had a retake is a joke. For every penalty, especially with a slow run-up, there’s going to be people encroaching. But that’s the game I suppose, he’s made the decision.”