Kai Havertz is suffering from a ‘confidence crisis’ after another difficult game in front of goal as Arsenal beat Manchester City 5-1 on Sunday. That is the opinion of Thierry Henry but the Arsenal legend also took time to defend the forward for his part in the huge Premier League win. The Gunners kept the pressure on Liverpool in the title race with a vital win at the Emirates. The opening goal was scored within two minutes as Arsenal pounced on a Manuel Akanji mistake with Havertz finding himself one-on-one with goalkeeper Stefan Ortega.

The German forward elected to square it to Martin Odegaard who was able to find the back of the net even though going for goal was seemingly the better option. Later, Havertz had a golden chance to double his side’s lead after an Ortega mistake but instead he fired wide of the post. Though he is Arsenal’s top scorer this season, Havertz’s finishing has left a lot to be desired and Gary Neville was among those infuriated with the 25-year-old.

‘He didn’t want it! Havertz is having a confidence crisis,’ the Manchester United legend said while commentating for Sky Sports. This sentiment was echoed by Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher who at half-time added: ‘He has to score that!. ‘That’s a lack of confidence and a lack of quality. Almost every striker in the Premier League would look at that situation and fancy themselves to score.’.

Thankfully, Havertz’s miss did not come back to bite Arsenal as while Erling Haaland equalised in the second-half, Thomas Partey restored the home side’s lead minutes later. A superb goal from Myles Lewis-Skelly gave the Gunners breathing room before Havertz went from zero to hero, firing in the fourth goal much to the delight of the Emirates crowd before Ethan Nwaneri finished off the rout with the last kick of the game.

‘It is such a big moment for him!’ Neville added: ‘For Havertz, he didn’t have much time to think about it. It’s natural.’. Thierry Henry agreed with his fellow pundits that the former Chelsea star was struggling with confidence but also defended him over his decision to pass to Odegaard for the opener. ‘We talked about lack of confidence, he looked for a better option,’ the Arsenal legend began.

Asked whether he should have gone for goal himself, he replied: ‘Yeah, but when you’re lacking confidence, Odegaard is a better option. ‘By the way when you score, you’re right so he was right!’. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Arrow MORE: Myles Lewis-Skelly and Gabriel keep Erling Haaland beef sizzling by mocking Man City star.