5 days ago
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Arsenal and Newcastle United have faced off in some heated matches but Dan Burn is actually a big fan of Kai Havertz
Dan Burn has admitted that Kai Havertz is "quite a nice guy" despite several heated clashes between the two. In recent meetings between Arsenal and Newcastle United at St James' Park, several yellow cards have been dished out with Havertz receiving one for a very late tackle on Sean Longstaff.
That was one of six cautions dished out during Newcastle's 1-0 win in November 2023 courtesy of a controversial Anthony Gordon winner. In their latest clash at Emirates Stadium, Burn was booked after a scrum broke out with he and Jakub Kiwior having a fist full of each others shirts.
Burn and Havertz specifically have come to blows on a number of occasions with their feud starting before the latter had even joined Arsenal.
Though an elbow from Havertz while he was at Chelsea left Burn requiring stitches before he snuck in ahead of the Newcastle man to score the winner, the England international has revealed Havertz and his Arsenal teammates are actually a good bunch.
“He's actually, frustratingly enough, quite a nice guy. I had a drink with him and he's actually sound," he told Four Four Two. “I saw him in pre-season when we played in Singapore. We had time where we could go and have a few drinks, and we saw some of the Arsenal lads. I just got chatting to him. We both said to each other, 'That's just the way it is when we play,' we've just got to be at that sort of level.”
Havertz has played just a few times since that friendly clash having suffered a knee injury against Manchester United on the opening day which required a minor procedure to fix. Arteta has however stated that he is close to returning.
He said in a press conference last week: "[Scans] clear, not yet, but they [Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres] are getting closer and closer. We are very positive with both of them and that's it."
As a result of that issue, Havertz missed the two teams facing off back in September with Arsenal coming out victorious after late goals from Mikel Merino and Gabriel Magalhaes.
It was no surprise that controversial moments arrived with a penalty overturned by VAR and two spot-kicks for potential handballs not given.
The feeling of relief from Arteta was on display clearly in his post-match press conference after the 2-1 victory on Tyneside.
He said: "Unbelievable feeling, that's what football is about. And a team, when you get what you deserve right at the end, it's not a better feeling than that."
Stamford Bridge is another difficult place for the Gunners and that was on full display this past weekend as they failed to beat 10-man Chelsea. With fixtures coming thick and fast, it could soon be reflected upon as a very good point.
Arsenal are back in Premier League action on Wednesday evening with Brentford as the visitors to Emirates Stadium. Another challenging trip elsewhere is on the schedule for this weekend as the Gunners take on Aston Villa at Villa Park.
Beyond that, Arsenal take on Club Brugge in Belgium in the Champions League before returning to home soil with a clash against Wolves.
A first trip to the Hill Dickinson Stadium, where Everton are expected to be without Iliman Ndiaye and Idrissa Gueye, arrives before Christmas with a Carabao Cup tie against Crystal Palace just a few days later.
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