Mikel Arteta has refused to answer questions directly about prospective Arsenal signing Eberechi Eze, but his words suggested that completion of the transfer could only be a matter of time.
Arsenal pounced to beat north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur to a deal on Wednesday, matching the Spurs offer and persuading Eze to join them instead. Spurs hadn’t finalised their agreement due to Palace wanting Eze to play the first leg of a Conference League play-off, which he subsequently didn’t feature in anyway.
An Arsenal medical was scheduled for Friday, coming too late for Eze to be involved in this weekend’s Premier League clash between the Gunners and Leeds United.
Arteta faced the media on Friday, with the transfer an unsurprising topic of conversation. With no official completion or announcement, the Arsenal boss could only diplomatically respond.
“Nothing to comment,” he said.
“I can never talk about any player that is not part of our group yet.”
The last word, “yet”, is the big one for Arsenal fans, effectively confirming it will be soon.
Eze was seemingly ready to sign with Tottenham only a few days ago but, aside from Spurs not closing the deal, it is his history with the Gunners as a fan and former academy player that led the 27-year-old to change his mind. That desire for players to be at Arsenal was also put to Arteta.
“That’s the number one, that they want to be with us and feel something special to come to us. Then the person, what personality we are going to bring…and then the rest comes,” he said.
“I think we have done very well in the last few years to create this spirit in the team.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘We Have Done Very Well’—Mikel Arteta Quizzed on Imminent Eberechi Eze Signing.
