Eberechi Eze north London derby hat-trick already felt like a landmark moment for Arsenal. Then Mikel Arteta explained what had happened in the days before the game, and the story behind it became even clearer.
Fresh from international duty, Eze was given two days off. He took only one. After a single day of rest, he was back at the training ground, asking questions, looking for detail and demanding extra work. For Arteta, that mindset is exactly why “these things happen” when a player of such talent steps onto a stage like the Emirates.
In his post-match comments, the Arsenal manager painted a picture of a footballer whose ability is matched by hunger. Eze’s three goals were the headline, but Arteta was more interested in the desire, the aura and the belief that, at any moment, his No.10 can win a game on his own.
Arteta reveals the story behind Eze’s hat-trick
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Arteta began by framing the hat-trick as no accident. “Things happen for a reason,” he said, before lifting the lid on Eze’s schedule after the international break. The club gave him two days off, standard recovery time for a player who had been away with his country.
But Eze was not interested in staying away for long. “After the international duty, he had two days off & after one day, he wanted to train. He wanted to improve & he wanted to do extra practice & he was asking me questions about this & that,” Arteta explained.
Those lines tell you as much about the player as the goals themselves. This is not just a No.10 relying on natural flair. It is someone who cuts short his rest to fine-tune details with his manager, who sees an extra session as a chance to be sharper when it matters.
Mikel Arteta on Eberechi Eze hat-trick and desire to improve
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For Arteta, the combination of ability and attitude is what makes Eze so exciting. “When a player has such a talent & his desire is at that level, then these things happen,” he said. In other words, the hat-trick was the product of work as much as it was of skill.
The Arsenal boss was clear that Eze’s big day was earned, not gifted*. “He fully deserves it, I’m so happy for him because since the day that he came, he brought something else to the team.”* That “something else” is hard to measure, but easy to feel on days when he takes control of a game.
Arteta also stressed how often Eze had been pushing to learn more. The questions “about this & that” hint at a player invested in the tactical side as well, looking for tweaks that can help him find space, arrive in the right zones and influence matches from multiple areas of the pitch.
Eberechi Eze aura that this team needed
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Beyond the numbers, Arteta kept coming back to the intangible qualities Eze has brought since signing. “It’s a joy, it’s an aura that this team needed,” he said. That choice of word aura speaks to presence as much as performance.
Eze plays with a calm confidence, holding the ball in tight spaces, drawing defenders and opening gaps for others. When he is on the pitch, team-mates know they can give him the ball under pressure and something positive is likely to happen. That sense of assurance can lift an entire side.
Arteta clearly believes that aura is contagious. He wants it to spread through the group, feeding belief and aggression in big games. A hat-trick in a derby does not just settle one match; it can shift how opponents prepare and how his own squad feel when they step onto the pitch with him.
What Eze’s hat-trick means for Arsenal’s future
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Looking ahead, Arteta sees Eze as a player who can define moments. “Hopefully it will give a lot of confidence in him & the team, that at any moment, he can win us a game. That’s the ability that he has & he certainly needs to fulfil that talent,” he said.
That is both praise and challenge. The manager is telling Eze that he is good enough to decide matches on his own, but also that he must reach that level consistently. The bar is now set at hat-trick impact, game-winning influence and regular “something else” for the squad.
For Arsenal, having a No.10 who cuts holidays short, stays late to practise and then delivers on the biggest stage is priceless. Eze’s performance against Tottenham will be remembered for the goals, but inside the club it may be remembered just as much for what it says about his mindset.
If he keeps marrying that talent with the same hunger Arteta describes, this hat-trick could be the start of a new phase in his Arsenal career. A phase where “things happen for a reason” because, long before the whistle blows, Eberechi Eze is already doing the work to make them happen.
Related Items:Eberechi Eze, Latest Mikel Arteta News | Transfer News | Injury News and Update, Tottenham Hotspur
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