Kai Havertz will miss Germany’s upcoming Nations League matches after withdrawing from the squad ahead of the international break, Soccernet.football understands.
The Gunners forward was in action for the full 90 minutes in their Premier League comeback win against newly-promoted Southampton on Saturday, grabbing his team’s equalizer as they went on to seal a 3-1 win.
Havertz has enjoyed a strong start to the 2024/2025 season, registering seven goal involvements in all competitions.
However, he will be unavailable for the games against Bosnia-Herzegovina and the Netherlands due to injury, with uncertainty surrounding his availability for the Gunners after the international break.
“Kai Havertz will miss the upcoming international matches against Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Netherlands due to knee problems,” Germany announced on X.
“National team coach Julian Nagelsmann has nominated Jonathan Burkardt in Havertz’s place. Get well soon Kai.”
Burkardt, who is set to fill in for the Arsenal forward, currently plies his trade in the Bundesliga. The 24-year-old progressed through the ranks at Mainz 05 and has now become a main-stay in their attacking setup.
Having previously represented Germany at both the Under-19 and Under-21 categories, the striker will be linking up with the German senior national team for the first time and he could potentially make his debut against Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Burkardt has enjoyed a fine start to the season, scoring five goals in seven appearances so far. He will certainly be full of confidence after netting twice in Mainz’s 3-0 victory over St. Pauli on Saturday.
Given the absence of Germany’s more established striking talents like Havertz and Niclas Füllkrug, who is also sidelined through injury, the Mainz forward could get a chance to impress in the national team colours.
