Kai Havertz has been ruled out of Germany’s September World Cup qualifiers after suffering a knee injury that requires surgery
The 26-year-old picked up the problem after coming on as a sub in Arsenal’s 1-0 win at Manchester United on the opening weekend and played no part in the 5-0 victory against Leeds.
Arsenal have so far provided scant details on the nature of the knee injury or on a recovery timeframe but David Ornstein now reports that the forward will undergo surgery which should keep him out until around November.
Speaking at a press briefing in Hurtgenwald earlier this week, Germany’s national team director Rudi Völler confirmed Havertz would not join Julian Nagelsmann’s squad. “He certainly won’t make it; he has a knee injury,” Völler said.
“We don’t know exactly how things will unfold in the next few weeks. Whether surgery will be necessary or whether it will be treated conservatively.”
His last appearance for Germany came in November 2024, a 1-1 draw against Hungary.
Given the timeframe for recovery, Havertz has either suffered a meniscus tear, a cartilage injury or an MCL injury.
Arthroscopic surgery for a meniscus tear generally leads to a return in about 6–12 weeks, depending on severity. For a cartilage injury, surgery is required if loose cartilage fragments cause problems while minor-to-moderate ligament repairs (like for an MCL) can also lead to a 2–3 month absence.
With Havertz sidelined, Arsenal’s forward options fall heavily on summer signing Viktor Gyökeres, supported by Eberechi Eze, and Noni Madueke as Mikel Arteta manages a growing injury list that also includes Bukayo Saka and Martin Ødegaard along with Ben White and Christian Norgaard.