Havertz off the mark as Arsenal display their firepower

Kai Havertz scored for Arsenal while Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber also made their first appearances for their new club as the Gunners beat Wayne Rooney’s MLS All-Stars 5-0 in Washington DC.

See: Arsenal line-up and report

Arsenal took an early lead as Bukayo Saka set up Gabriel Jesus for a beautiful chip from outside the box.

Saka also assisted the second as Leandro Trossard fired home from 20 yards.

Jorginho scored a penalty at the start of the second half, while Rice and Timber were introduced for the final 25 minutes, with Timber playing at right-back.

Martin Odegaard found Gabriel Martinelli, who made it 4-0, and Havertz opened his account for the club late on, bringing down a cross at the back post before firing home with a powerful finish.

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For Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, it was encouraging to see the goals coming from five different players.

“The idea is to be more unpredictable every year and be more difficult for the opponents to stop and nullify what we want to do,” he told the club’s official website. “That’s what we have now, especially at the back and in the midfield, the options we have to open up the spaces. We have many more options than we had last year.

“We have to start doing the right things in pre-season to get the best possible preparation and get that chemistry and cohesion in the team.”

Havertz’s versatility will add to Arsenal’s unpredictability, Arteta feels. “I think, again, it’s one of the main qualities he has," the manager said.

“He gives us something very different with his quality and size as well, when you have to beat the press for example and use him as a target man.

“So, we will see. For now he’s playing in the attacking midfield position, but I’m sure throughout the season, and throughout games as well, we’re going to have the options to play him in different positions.”

Timber making early impression

Timber also gives Arteta a variety of tactical options, given he can play at right-back, centre-back and even move into central midfield.

“I think you’ve seen tonight that he’s a really versatile player, you can see him defend in those positions,” said Arteta. “He gives you the capacity to invert, to occupy different spaces.

“He’s so comfortable on the ball in that phase and he’s also got this aggression in the duels and that dynamism that I really like about him.

“You saw from the first action; he went and won the ball straightaway on that duel and he was ready to go. He’s been like that in the last few days – he’s playing really well with the team, and I think he’s going to be a really important player for us.”

Trossard injury update

Trossard was taken off after 56 minutes with an injury, but Arteta is expecting a positive update from his medical staff.

"He got a knock and obviously we don’t want to take any risks at this stage," said the manager. "He had some pain and we will see how tomorrow is, but I don’t expect it to be anything big."

Arsenal are in next in pre-season action on Saturday when they face Manchester United in New York.

See: Clubs' pre-season fixtures and results

Also in this series

Part 1: Positive signs for Postecoglou despite defeat on Spurs debut
Part 2: Liverpool forwards combine to earn pre-season win
Part 3: Young Chelsea stars impress as Pochettino starts with big win