Kai Havertz might return before end of season, Arteta says

German striker Kai Havertz might return to the Arsenal squad before the end of the season, manager Mikel Arteta has said.

Havertz, Arsenal's main striker this season, was injured in early February, picking up a serious hamstring injury during the club's mid-season break in Dubai.

When it was pointed out to Arteta during Friday's press conference in London that Bukayo had returned after 104 days from a similar procedure, and it would be 108 days from Kai’s injury to the final day of the season, he was asked if there was a possibility the striker could still play some part this season.

Arteta, cautious as always, suggested there could be, but it was still too early to tell how Kai’s rehab was going.

"Every injury isn’t the same. The mindset of (Kai and Bukayo), though, is very, very similar. They have a great injury history, great work ethic, are desperate to get back playing as quickly as possible, and we have great medical staff as well to look after them," said Arteta.

"Hopefully, we can have him, but let's wait. Once you get to the last stage of the rehab, is when you can better understand how close or far away you are to making that next step."

Prior to his injury, Havertz had scored 17 goals for Arsenal and six for Germany this season.

Arsenal take on Brentford in the English Premier League this weekend.