It's official: Eberechi Eze has agreed to sign for Arsenal after spending five years at Crystal Palace.
Wearing the red and white kit, he walked out from a tunnel to a wave of rapturous applause from the fans in the Emirates Stadium as the kickoff loomed for their first home game against Leeds United.
Eze could not stop himself from smiling at the satisfaction of the supporters. He is the sort of spark that brings a crowd to life, and in equal measure, the dream of this move has been fire in his belly for a long time. Now, that aspiration is a reality, but it has been a long journey to arrive at this point.
We all know the story by now. Eze was a childhood fan of the Gunners and got his first academy experience in the red half of North London. At 13, the club cut him from their plans, and that sense of rejection has been something that has helped the 27-year-old to grow as a person and professional.
More trials and tribulations came his way. Like many young men, Eze looked for openings across the circuit in the capital city, playing for **Reading**and then Millwall, who released him at the age of 16.
Yet, the attacker would not give up. Taking on studies in college, he trained with QPR, whom he joined in 2016. An impressive loan spell at Wycombe Wanderers would pave the way into the first team, and a 14 goal haul for the Hoops in the 2019/20 **Championship**season earned a move to Crystal Palace.
Protagonist at the Palace
Wilfried Zaha was the talisman of the team, but Eze emerged as a standout figure in the squad by his side. The path of progression was brightening, but disaster soon struck again. The attacker snapped his Achilles tendon and spent most of the 2021/22 season on the sidelines as he rehabbed from the injury.
But this boy became a battle-hardened man. Still full of life and light on his feet, Eze excited crowds with his creativity as soon as he returned to full fitness. Michael Olise was his accomplice, and the pair powered Palace to safety upon the reappointment of **Roy Hodgson**as manager in March 2023.
Eze enjoyed a streak of six goals from ten games and was the top scorer for the Eagles that year, hitting double digits. He backed up that output with 11 goals in the 2023/24 season in a front three with Olise and Jean-Philippe Mateta that thrilled under Oliver Glasner at the end of the campaign.
The best was yet to come: Palace have lost four of their last 25 fixtures, making history on the way. Eze started the scoring against **Fulham**and Aston Villa to kick off three-goal triumphs in the quarter-final and the semi-final of the FA Cup. Then in the **FA Cup**final, he was the man of the moment.
The Eagles ended up empty-handed in their last two trips to Wembley Stadium, but not this time. **Man City**would go trophyless, conceding a sweet strike from the boot of Eze in the first half.
The final whistle would begin the fanfare as Palace celebrated the first major honour in their history. To top it off, they beat league champions **Liverpool**to the Community Shield earlier this month.
Eze would not be present to play against **Fredrikstad**in the first continental clash in the history of the club. He might have let down Glasner, but he is still an icon in the eyes of the Croydon community.
Now, he is back where the story started to rewrite the narrative, while **Arsenal**are dreaming of the top titles to put a painful past behind them. Nine months down the line, the fairy tale could be complete.