Arsenal has signed 27-year-old Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace, in what was one of the wildest sagas you’ll ever see. The forward looked all set to join Spurs, who, for weeks, have been the only club in the running to sign him. However, in a shock move, Spurs’ North London rivals swooped in at the last moment and got the deal over the line. Reports suggest that Kai Havertz’s injury during their match against Man United was the catalyst for this move.
The North London club now has its hands on one of the most exciting players in the Premier League. Hence, Arteta will be forced to make changes to his lineup.
Where can Eze fit in at Arsenal
The Gunners have struggled to create Open Play chances recently. Most of their goal-scoring opportunities come from corners and set pieces. The match against United is the perfect example. Only 0.27 out of Arsenal’s 1.26 xG during the game came from open play. Another issue with Arsenal is that usually their entire creative burden falls entirely on one player, Bukayo Saka. This is a consequence of the drop in form of both Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martinelli. Noni Madueke, who also signed for this summer, could help. However, the winger has had issues of his own in past seasons.
Eze, who typically played as a number 10 for the Eagles, could help solve this issue. Moreover, he can easily slot in at the Left Wing. He is a complete profile for a forward; a dribbler with flair, someone who can make runs in behind, and an output machine. He gives Arsenal plenty of options while providing valuable competition to the underperforming players.
Eze is more than just dribbling & ball carrying, he’s also an output machine. He’s as dangerous in the box as he is outside it.
—Box movement
—Unstoppable ball striking techniques
—Incisive creative passing with perfect weight and timing
—Clutch genepic.twitter.com/YxljtaUHTd
— The Football Era (@FootballEra_) August 21, 2025
Possible lineups
Option 1
At first glance, the most obvious way to fit Eze into the team would be to start him in place of Martinelli. The starting lineup would then be:
Raya
Timber Saliba Gabriel Lewis-Skelly
Zubimendi Rice
Saka Odegaard Eze
Gyokeres
This is a small yet substantial upgrade to a pretty solid lineup. Eze’s creativity and flair will be valuable for Gyokeres and Saka. Eze’s abilities will attract defences to him, giving Saka spaces to penetrate. Conversely, Eze may also feed off Saka’s passes with his incisive runs in behind, when not playing against low blocks. While the pure striker, Gyokeres, may receive a lot of goal-scoring chances generated by Eze. The issue with this lineup, however, is the fact that Eze has primarily been a number 10. Playing him at the wing *may* limit his abilities a bit.
Option 2
However, if Madueke forces himself into the lineup and Odegaard is still not being decisive enough, Eze may have to start at the centre. Then the attack would lineup as follows, while the rest of the team remains same:
Saka Eze Madueke
Gyokeres
Eze will be playing in his favoured position, giving him the freedom to play to his abilities. Such a formation enables more frequent link up plays between the most creative players in the team, Eze and Saka. This formation will also allow Eze to cut through the low blocks that Arsenal usually face, front on. Eze will be enabled with two pacey wingers to play through. Gyokeres, with his back to the goal during settled play situations, can lay off passes to Eze, who is dangerous in and around the box, or even combine with him to get into better positions.
The wings may still be imbalanced, as Madueke is relatively unproven at Left Wing. Leandro Trossard is also an option for the Left Wing, however, he’s proven to be a better super-sub than a starter. However, this may generate opportunities for Rice and Lewis-Skelly to attack spaces on the left side, as the field of play will generally be tilted towards Eze, Saka and Timber on the right.
Option 3
If Gyokeres doesn’t perform, Eze may fill in at striker until Havertz and Jesus return.
Saka Odegaard Madueke
Eze
However, this option doesn’t seem likely as the Gunners may not give up on the Swedish striker that easily, considering how much they invested in him. This will also limit Eze’s abilities, as he will be forced to have his back to goal in most situations in such a system. Hence, this lineup may not perform well, barring any surprises.
Best option?
The best option, for now, is the 1st option. The best course of action for Arteta would be to play Eze at Left Wing to begin with. Then, based on Odegaard and Madueke’s form, he may switch to the 2nd option.