Former Aston Villa player Gabby Agbonlahor is against Arsenal’s decision to sign Chelsea striker Kai Havertz.

The 24-year-old Germany international is among the players’ manager Mikel Arteta is chasing to bring to Emirates in a deal worth £65m, alongside West Ham United’s Declan Rice, who is tipped as their top target, and Ajax star Jurrien Timber.

“I don’t understand that transfer is very strange. Arsenal have not learned their lesson with transfers, Kai Havertz isn’t a clinical striker,” Agbonlahor said as quoted by Football Insider. “It would be a wrong deal for the Gunners, and I’m sure that their fans would agree.”

Havertz arrived from Bayer Leverkusen for an initial club record fee of £72m in August 2020 and with the reputation of being one of the most exciting young talents in Europe. There were flashes of his talents at Chelsea but, in general, he underwhelmed, in large part from being deployed as a central striker, which is not his preferred position.

His departure is part of an overhaul of Chelsea’s squad that includes N’Golo Kante joining the Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad on a free transfer and Mateo Kovacic moving to Manchester City for £25m. Arteta is a long-time admirer of Havertz and believes he can help his team bridge the gap to Man City.