Arsenal have been linked with a move for Crystal Palace and England international Eberechi Eze. The attacking midfielder has been one of the most impressive Premier League talents and his performances have been rewarded with a place in Gareth Southgate’s squad at the European Championships.
After scoring 11 goals and claiming another six assists it is no wonder that a side like the Gunners would be keen. Mikel Arteta has a tricky situation regarding his attacking midfield options with two potentially facing a summer departure.
Martin Odegaard has been such a standout player and reliable figure in the squad that rotation has been tricky to manage. When he was missing at Newcastle in the Gunners’ damaging 1-0 defeat, Kai Havertz came into the role but moved into the centre-forward position as the season developed.
The two other options are Emile Smith Rowe and Fabio Vieira. The former has suffered from considerable injury problems, limiting his game time and seeing him slip down the pecking order while the latter has also faced fitness issues but reports surrounding unimpressive training output have cast doubt over the Portuguese’s future too.
Both should earn the club a sizeable transfer return if they were to be sold, which could be used to reinvest into any prospective move for Eze. However, BBC Sport claimed that £60million is the starting expectation for offers for Eze, which is likely to be more than the combined fees of Smith Rowe and Vieira, and therefore Arsenal will need to spend too.
Yet the numbers don’t lie when it comes to the quality of Eze. He ranks according to FBRef in the 94th percentile for non-penalty goals per 90 among attacking midfielders and wingers in the top five leagues, in the 95th for shots per 90, in the 81st for shot-creating actions per 90 and in the 91st for successful take-ons.
Arsenal enter a new season with an even more rigorous calendar. Thanks in part to the expansion of the Champions League and the removal of the winter break because of the later start caused by both Euro 2024 and the Copa America, having quality depth that is of, or as close as possible to, starting quality is key.
Eze certainly provides that and could allow Odegaard to gain some important rest whilst also offering a potential tactical difference for Arteta to pair the two together. While Eze has operated more so as an attacking midfield player outside of the midfield three, the structure of the Arsenal attack might suit the style of the Palace talisman.
However, with priorities in central midfield perhaps not including a player of the ilk of Eze, it might be that any potential move comes much later. Allowing for other ins and outs to materialise and give the club scope of whether a move could be feasible.
