Former Chelsea star Joe Cole has said Chelsea should never have sold Kai Havertz to Arsenal.

Signed for a huge fee of £71m from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2000, Kai Havertz never really reached his best heights at Stamford Bridge.

Havertz swapped Stamford Bridge for the Emirates Stadium last summer in a deal worth £65million.

After initially struggling to settle in at Arsenal, Havertz has become a key man for Mikel Arteta’s side.

Havertz, now 24, scored 19 goals in 91 Premier League appearances for Chelsea, but is best remembered for netting the winner in the 2021 Champions League final against Manchester City.

Joe Cole told the Daily Express of Kai Havertz: “I thought he was a brilliant player for Chelsea.

“He came in with a massive transfer fee and he played in multiple positions and always did a good job. And he scored the winning goal in the Champions League final.

“I’ve always liked him. I didn’t want to see him go. He’s gone there [to Arsenal] and done really well and found his feet.

“He’s a box player, whether he plays as a No.9 or a false nine, he’s got a lovely instinct to score goals and a lovely weight of pass and calmness.

“I’d have loved to see him stay at Chelsea, I really would. I think he’s a cracking player. When he was playing that role for Chelsea, that role was synonymous of the last 20 years of like [Didier] Drogba, [Fernando] Torres and [Diego] Costa, recognised centre-forwards.

“When he was playing there, Chelsea fans are used to having that. I thought he did a great job at Chelsea and he was a great signing for Arsenal.”