Eberechi Eze is the newest member of the **Arsenal**squad. He walked out to a cacophony of applause at the Emirates Stadium before the kickoff against Leeds United, embraced as a creative spark.
But the smiles from the supporters were not the only reason for the attacker to be so glad. He was taking in the achievement of an aspiration that had driven him for over a decade, and he shared the journey to this point in his career with Ian Wright, another iconic figure from his former club.
‘I know where we’ve come from’
Like Wright, Eze found Crystal Palace to be the perfect place to platform his talent. He spent five years in South London and will forever have a warm affinity with the Eagles and their management.
“Not enough words to talk about Palace. Can't really explain the feeling, but forever grateful, man. That's how I feel. That would be me for life.”
But his boyhood dream has come to fruition, and it is taking time for the player to process reality.
“I still haven't fully processed everything. I'm floating right now. I think I'll go home and go over everything, speak with people, and then it'll start to settle in. But I know what this thing is. I know what it means. I know where we've come from as a family.”
They say that good things come to those who wait. The attacker has been exercising extreme patience, paving the journey back to the **Emirates Stadium**in his mind since he left the club at the age of 13.
“That's mad. I can only thank God. I can only thank God for the opportunity to be here, to be playing, to be recognized in this type of manner. For me, it’s what I wanted to do from those pictures. It's in me. It's part of me. I just feel so blessed. That just gives me more energy to keep pushing, keep working.”
The 27-year-old has expressed the importance of faith in his life. The prayers from his parents were not just a desperate plea, but were the roots of a steadfast belief in his calling as a top level athlete.
“That's what I want to get to. And I remember the day I got released, my mom said a prayer She was praying that that this reverse would happen. She prayed for this. For me, this is a realization of a prayer that we prayed 20 odd years ago. This is this is deeper than anyone can understand.”
‘Arsenal was where it’s at’
Eze has been around the block in the capital city. He was on the books at Fulham, Reading, and then Millwall, where he was released from the professional academy system at the age of 16. QPR would become his route back into the big time, but his heart has always been set on being with the Gunners.
“I'll be honest, I thought about coming back from the moment I understood other clubs and what it meant to become a pro. I've always thought Arsenal was where it's at. That's what I want to achieve.”
Tottenham Hotspur had their eyes on his services as a replacement for James Maddison in the role of a creative spark. But **Arsenal**agreed the paperwork to pry him away, and once the terms were complete, Eze could hardly contain his excitement at the realisation that his prayers were answered.
“My wife was at work and I knew that she's a nurse. She works in ICU and didn’t want to disturb her. But I got to get this off. I got someone's got to hear this. So I called Chima, my little brother.. I called Ketchy. He was busy. So I wanted to call my immediate family. Just like individually just say, "Don't say anything but this. Don't say anything but this." And I tried to work my way around the family.”
**Arsenal**announced the deal on Saturday, and the day could not have gone better for his close circle.
“Everyone's good. Everyone's so happy. Everyone's again, I think they're taking some time to process it because it's a lot. We didn't see this, didn't see how this day would go, but it happened beautifully.”