Gazumped: Eberechi Eze
Arsenal Football Newsletter
Arsenal Football Newsletter
Standard Sport understands that talks had slowed between Tottenham and Crystal Palace in recent days as the Eagles stalled in a bid to allow Eze to appear in Thursday’s Conference League play-off against Fredrikstad, opening the door for Arsenal to gazump their north London rivals.
Eze is expected to choose the Emirates as his preferred destination.
The Gunners are prepared to pay £60million for the player, and have also offered faster payment terms with easier add-ons to win over the Eagles.
Negotiations are ongoing, but Arsenal are confident of completing a deal.
Arsenal have held an interest in the 27-year-old for some time, but accelerated their interest today after Havertz suffered a knee injury which is expected to leave him sidelined for some time.
Eze led Crystal Palace to a historic 2024-25 season, winning the club’s first major honour as they pipped Manchester City to the FA Cup before adding the Community Shield to their trophy cabinet earlier this month.
He joins Noni Madueke and Viktor Gyokeres in reinforcing the Gunners’ forward line this summer.
It is a major blow for Tottenham, though, who had hoped to land Eze to add left-sided impetus to their attack. They are also hoping to add a centre-back before the window closes on September 1.
Eze will be able to represent Arsenal in the Champions League regardless of whether he appears in Crystal Palace’s meeting with Fredrikstad.