Arsenal make first moves in pursuit of Chelsea star Kai Havertz

talkSPORT understands that the Gunners hold a genuine interest in signing the Blues forward, however, the two clubs are far apart in their valuations of the player.

The Arsenal pursuit of Havertz is still at a relatively early stage but The Athletic reports it's stepped up in recent days after contact with Chelsea and the player.

Germany international Havertz has also been linked with Bayern Munich, who are managed by former Chelsea boss Thomas Tuchel, the report adds.

He has also previously been linked with a move to Real Madrid too.

It's widely reported Chelsea are open to selling a number of their players in order to offset past spending as well as fund transfers for this summer with Todd Boehly spending over £600million on new players since taking control of the club in May 2022.

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Havertz, who joined Chelsea in a £90m deal in the summer of 2020, had a tough 2022/23 season, scoring just nine goals in 47 appearances in all competitions.

Arsenal are favourites to sign West Ham and England star Declan Rice with an opening bid expected shortly.

Mikel Arteta's side return return from their summer break in the first week of July, ahead of a training camp in Germany before jetting off to the USA on their pre-season tour.