Arsenal have been heavily criticised for ‘upsetting their biggest enemies’ after hijacking north London rivals Tottenham’s agreed deal to sign Eberechi Eze, with the Crystal Palace star also tipped to cause ‘problems’ for Mikel Arteta at The Emirates.
As late as Tuesday afternoon, Spurs appeared to be firmly in the driving seat to sign the England playmaker, with talks progressing over a £60million deal for the 27-year-old.
However, the Gunners completely stole a march over their north London rivals, with trusted sources suggesting that Eze is now on the cusp of joining Arteta’s side in a remarkable turn of events – with a medical penned in for Friday.
Arsenal accelerated their interest in the Palace star after Kai Havertz suffered an injury setback, although it’s not yet clear how long the Germany international will be on the sidelines for.
Havertz came on in the second half of Sunday’s victory over Manchester United and completed the game. However, he was then absent from Arsenal’s open training at The Emirates on Wednesday, due to concerns over a reported knee issue.
Former Chelsea defender Frank Leboeuf, however, fears Arteta is liable to ‘create a problem’ for himself by adding another creative player to his ranks and even suggested the move to sign Eze is motivated by a desire to embarrass Tottenham over an actual signing ‘need’.
“When you have somebody like Eze do you go for it at £68m when you already have Martinelli, Trossard, Madueke who can play on the left?” Leboeuf told ESPN FC. “I don’t know why you also really need him. It’s a big amount of money just to upset your biggest enemies.
“I’m not saying or judging Eze, and not saying he’s not bigger or stronger or better than the others. I don’t think Arsenal need that kind of player to win the title.
“They already have players for that. They have three players on that side and I really think this is nothing to do with Havertz’s injury.”
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Why Eze could cause ‘trouble’ at Arsenal
Leboeuf has also explained why he feels adding Eze to the mix could create a massive headache for Arteta and potentially be troublesome.
The Frenchman added: “He [Eze] doesn’t play on the left and I think the only room left for Eze is the left side unless Gyokeres is not good enough, unless Saka gets injured, unless the three players in midfield get injured, Eze can only play on the left side.
“For me £68m for Eze, I’m not sure you need it. Don’t forget you need to find the balance of the locker room, if you bring Eze what do you do with Martinelli, Trossard or Madueke who you just bought?
“People can’t play because that guy has come. You have to take care of everything. It’s not just about adding numbers for the sake of it. Even if the last one is better and more talented than the others. You have to keep other things in perspective.
“I’m not sure Eze can be the X-Factor for Arsenal to win the Premier League. He could but he could also create trouble.”
Arsenal will now be keeping their fingers crossed that Eze gets through Palace’s Europa Conference League play-off first leg clash against Fredrikstad unscathed.
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Eze vs Odegaard last season
Eze vs Odegaard 2024-25 PL stats: Appearances 34 v 30 Goals 8 v 3 Assists 8 v 8 Chances created 57 v 60 Shots on target 29 v 17 Take-ons completed 67 v 25
How Eze and Odegaard compared in the Premier League last season