Outscored Havertz: Arsenal can land £30m “goal machine” who’s like Watkins

This interest from the Red Devils could make signing Brobbey slightly more complicated, but given his form last season, the fact he outscored Havertz, and the comparisons to Watkins, Arsenal should be looking to bring him to North London.

How Brobbey compares to Watkins

Now, before we compare Brobbey’s goalscoring record to Havertz’s, let’s examine this comparison to the Villa ace and where it came from.

It mainly stems from FBref, which compared players in similar positions in last season’s Europa Conference League competition and then created a list of the ten most comparable players for each one. They ranked Watkins as the number-one striker most similar to the Dutchman.

It’s far easier to see the actual similarities when you take a look at the specific underlying number for which the pair rank very closely, such as expected goals, progressive passes, key passes, live passes, carries and aerial duels won, all per 90.

However, it’s not just his similarity to the England ace that would make the 22-year-old a great signing; it’s also his output.

In just 43 appearances last season, the Dutch “goal machine,” as talent scout Jacek Kulig described him, found the back of the net 22 times and provided 12 assists, meaning he averaged a goal involvement every 1.26 games for the Amsterdam outfit.

In contrast, Havertz, who, by the end of last season, was the Gunners’ recognised number nine, scored 14 goals and provided seven assists in 51 appearances, equating to a still good but less impressive average of a goal involvement every 2.42 games.

Ultimately, Brobbey looks like he’d be an excellent signing for £30m based on his attacking output alone, but with the comparisons to England’s latest hero on top of that, he feels like a player Arsenal cannot afford to miss out on.