When Arsenal took the lead against Tottenham Hotspur, Ebelesi Eze turned his back on himself in celebration, smiling brightly and laughing with his team-mates.
There’s something Eze loves about Spurs. Remarkably, Sunday’s first goal was the Gunners’ first since the previous North London derby. It was also his first shot on target in the Premier League since that victory.
In total, the attacking midfielder has scored five times against Arsenal’s rivals. How great it would have been to face them every week.
Apart from those two games, the England international’s first season in north London was actually quite difficult. Still, there is hope now that Mikel Arteta has finally found a way to utilize him.
2025/26 Eze at Arsenal | |
|---|---|
game | 37 |
begins | 19 |
minutes | 2,246 |
the goal | 7 |
assist | 6 |
yellow card | 1 |
How Arteta can get more out of Eberechi Eze at Arsenal
What makes the turn of events surrounding Eze even better this season is the fact that he rejected a move to Tottenham’s Emirates Stadium in the summer.
The 27-year-old had agreed a move to Spurs, but after a belated phone call with a noisy neighbour, he ended up moving to the north London red side in a deal worth £67.5m.
Arsenal’s most expensive contract in history
The Gunners have spent generously in recent years.
However, there must have been a part of me that wondered what would have happened if I had gone to Tottenham.
In the end, it was a difficult debut for Eze at the Emirates, but he didn’t make much of an impression on Arteta, especially after he was sent off at half-time in the 1-1 draw with Brentford.
Speaking about that moment, Arteta said: “I could see that he wanted to prove something. The other day he was even upset with me because I didn’t play him from the start and because of some decisions I made. We are now starting to understand how to get the best out of him.”
Eze was naturally upset as well. It’s sad that he hasn’t played enough minutes since his hat-trick against Spurs, and he has only started twice in the top flight since December 13 against Wolves.
But it’s probably a penny less for both player and manager. As the Spaniard said, he has now finally figured out how to get the most out of himself.
how? Now, for most of his Arsenal career to date, he has played the ‘Martin Odegaard role’ on the slightly right side of midfield, but against Spurs he played more centrally in the more traditional No. 10 position.
What that meant was that Eze was not only closer to Victor Gokeres, but also closer to the penalty area where he could score a goal. Therefore, it was not surprising that he and their striker each scored two goals.
With Odegaard back and Kai Havertz expected to return soon after his injury, it will be interesting to see what happens with Eze. But Arteta now understands what he has to do. Move him closer to the box and watch the magic unfold.
That being said, players need to be more consistent. With so many players on the team competing for the same position, competition will only get more intense in the coming years.
Arsenal have already signed their next Eze
Competition to play behind Arsenal’s striker was so intense that Ethan Nwaneri had to move on loan to Marseille in France in January.
He joins Havertz and Odegaard in the battle for a place with Eze, but let’s not forget that young superstar Max Domann is also in the same role.
Dauman has been out injured for the past few months and is widely rumored to be on his way to football stardom. The same goes for young Holger Quintero.
Who? you may ask that question. During the winter, Arsenal announced that they had reached a contractual agreement to sign Ecuadorian twins Edwin and Holger Quintero from Independiente del Valle’s academy.
Independiente are currently well known for having one of the best youth systems in the world, producing the likes of Moises Caicedo, PSG’s William Pacho and Arsenal’s Piero Hincapie, among others.
Judging by that, the fuss about the Quintero twins is understandable. While Edwin is a wide player and immensely tricky, Holger is an attacking midfielder who looks like a player capable of matching the likes of Dauman and Nwaneri in the coming years.
The twins, both 16 years old, won’t officially join the club until the summer of 2027, so it will be a while before we see them in action. But fans should be very excited.
Well, Holger has been described by scout Jacek Kulig as “one of the most exciting U17 players in South America” and looks like he has the world at his feet.
What makes him so good? Like Eze, the teenager is described by Como scout Ben Mattinson as a “definitive creator with a killer final ball”.
Meanwhile, he has “very clean technique and incredible claw control,” according to scout Antonio Mango. It certainly looks like Arsenal’s number 10.
Just watching the clips of this youngster in action is enough to be blown away by his talent. This is a chance-making machine and the type of player that attracts multiple players simply because of how he can influence play in the final third.
A young attacking midfielder with 10/10 potential, he doesn’t look like Nwaneri or Dauman. I’m really excited to see how they incorporate all that into their long-term plans.
As great as Eze & Gokeres: £45m star had his best game at Arsenal vs Spurs
Arsenal won 4-1 against Spurs on Sunday night.
