Mikel Arteta mentioned Eberechi Eze had known as him on Wednesday as he thought of whether or not to signal for Tottenham to verify if there may nonetheless be a path to Arsenal for him.
“Sure, that reveals you the way a lot he wished to come back,” Arteta mentioned, as he mirrored on the ultimate twist to a saga by which Arsenal acted on their longstanding curiosity in Eze to gazump Spurs. “It's very troublesome typically since you need to be very clear and open with the gamers. They need to make selections which might be crucial.”
Spurs had agreed a charge with Crystal Palace for Eze however Arsenal stole in to get him for £60m plus £7.5m in add-ons. That they had held the higher hand over Spurs all summer season in that Eze at all times most popular to go to them, having supported them as a child and performed for his or her academy between the ages of eight and 13. However Arteta steered it was dramatic and “one of many quickest” transfers ultimately.
Eze was offered to the Emirates Stadium crowd earlier than Saturday's 5-0 win over Leeds, which featured an assured debut from the 15-year-old midfielder Max Dowman, who got here on as a Sixty fourth-minute substitute, however was marred by accidents to Martin Ødegaard (shoulder) and Bukayo Saka (hamstring).
“I feel he [Eze] has the capability to create these magic moments,” Arteta mentioned. “He's acquired that aptitude, that charisma that may be very contagious. We all know he can play as an attacking midfielder, proper or left. He doesn't care. He performs shifted off the left, as nicely. I'm positive we are going to discover the proper place for him.”
Saka's harm seemed to be extra critical than that of the captain and the timing is dangerous, with Arsenal going to Liverpool subsequent Sunday. “For Bukayo to come back off, for positive it seems like one thing that's vital,” Arteta mentioned. “He felt one thing in his hamstring whereas he was sprinting. That's by no means signal.
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“It's not the identical [hamstring] because the earlier harm [Saka missed three months of last season with a hamstring injury]. However he's had these accidents earlier than. He is aware of precisely the sensation of that. So let's wait. Martin felt one thing in his shoulder when he landed. We'll need to scan him tomorrow and perceive a bit higher.”
Arteta watched Dowman win the penalty for the fifth purpose, which was scored by Viktor Gyökeres, who had earlier made it 3-0 – his first objectives for Arsenal. The defender Jurriën Timber additionally scored twice. Saka acquired the opposite one.
“Max has zero hesitation,” Arteta mentioned. “He's so satisfied that he can go at 15 and ship that, which I've by no means witnessed in my life. For us, it brings pleasure, it brings emotion and one thing else that makes our jobs so nice.”
