New Arsenal signing Eberechi Eze will create “magic moments” and take the club to a different level, manager Mikel Arteta claimed.
Eze was presented to the Emirates crowd in the minutes before Arsenal’s 5-0 demolition job of Leeds which fired the Gunners to an early sight of the Premier League summit.
Eze did not complete a move – which could end up costing as much as £68million – in time to face the newly-promoted side.
The perfect welcome ❤️ pic.twitter.com/XzVcSq67ep
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) August 24, 2025
But with both Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard sustaining injuries in Arsenal’s second win in as many matches, Eze is set to be handed his debut against Liverpool at Anfield next Sunday.
And Arteta said of his latest recruit: “He (Eze) has the capacity to create these magic moments. He can do it from different positions, different situations. He’s got that flair and he’s got that charisma about him that is very contagious.
“It shows how much we want to take this club to a different level. His talent is unquestionable. He’s experienced in this league. The personality is unbelievable.
“He can play different positions. We know he can play as an attacking midfielder, right or left. He doesn’t care. And you can tell that what happened on that pitch (before the game) meant the world to him so I am delighted to have him.”
Eze says he feels like he has been “on trial” on his four visits to the Emirates Stadium with Palace.
“I’ve been on trial for four years, if I’m being honest,” he said in an interview with Ian Wright on the club’s official website.
“Every time I came to Arsenal, I looked at the seat that I used to sit on when I used to come to games with my brothers, and I’ve said every single time: ‘This is it – it’s time, this is an opportunity’.
“I’m not going to say I knew it was going to happen, but that’s the feeling.”
Eze is the seventh new face at the Emirates this summer amid a £250m spending spree which leaves Arteta armed with what he believes is the most complete side of his near six years in charge.
And the depth of Arteta’s squad is already set to be tested with Saka and Odegaard joining Kai Havertz on the injury table.
Havertz suffered a knee problem following Arsenal’s win at Manchester United last weekend, while Saka and Odegaard sustained hamstring and shoulder injuries respectively against Leeds.
Saka missed three-and-a-half months of last season after surgery on his right hamstring – on Saturday he injured his left hamstring – while captain Odegaard was also absent for 12 matches with an ankle problem as injuries derailed Arsenal’s quest for silverware.
The duo will undergo scans on Sunday to discover the extent of their latest setbacks, and Arteta continued: “You just have to see the amount of minutes that the team played in 2023-24. You could name the starting XI.
“Last year, it was a bit different because of the amount of injuries we had and the start to this season has not been great in that sense.
“But we are much more equipped, without a doubt – and that’s necessary. If you want to compete at this level and be very dominant, there is not any other option.”
Arsenal revealed on Sunday afternoon that due to Odegaard’s ongoing treatment for the injury sustained against Leeds, the club had been forced to postpone a scheduled appearance at the club’s store, The Armoury, on Monday.
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