Eberechi Eze to Arsenal transfer transforms Mikel Arteta demand after £738m statement

Eberechi Eze will become the third £50million+ player signed by Arsenal this summer when he joins from Crystal Palace over the coming days. It will almost certainly not come quickly enough for him to play against Leeds United on Saturday but he could be introduced to the Emirates Stadium crowd as a Gunner.

If someone like Eze cannot be shown off and unveiled, enjoyed before his real skills can actually be appreciated, then what is the point? He is a footballer of sheer delight, whose very movement and touch astound.

That is what Arsenal have been asking for all window and they have got it. For all the obvious qualities of Viktor Gyokeres (needed), Martin Zubimendi (also needed), Eze is something else entirely.

Arsenal's team last year could have realistically won the league if they had remained fit for more of the season. Ifs, buts, and maybes, but this was not a squad that needed plastic surgery, just a bit of dressing up.

Bukayo Saka in any sort of form is good enough to play for a title challenger, at minimum. Martin Odegaard pre-injury is the same. The defence is solid enough to be genuine contenders in any competition.

But at left-wing, Gabriel Martinelli in his current form was such a glaring weak link. Other players lost their mojo and things dropped off significantly from the 2023/24 levels or 2022/23 flair, but this was not the time to panic and throw the good work out.

Even Kai Havertz, often derided but with a strong Premier League record in north London, would have been enough to sustain a push at the top if he was not out for four months. On paper, Arsenal were only a few players away from adding quality in the areas they had no depth for.

That has all been addressed. There is a backup centre-half, full-backs coming out of Arteta's ears, and Christian Norgaard in midfield. Noni Madueke, Leandro Trossard, Ethan Nwaneri, and Martinelli are ample support for Eze and Saka.

All of this might even make Mikel Merino up front on occasion more tolerable. For Arsenal and Arteta, this is the summer they needed.

Once Eze is in, six of the nine most expensive players in club history will have been signed in the past two years, dating back to summer 2023. In that time, Arsenal will have spent £550million on new players.

For context, in the same time, Manchester City have splashed £590million. They have also won the league twice. City's sales are significantly higher as well.

They have brought in £290million from players. Arsenal, on the other hand, have struggled and are at just £140million. That could yet increase in the final week-and-a-bit of this window, but it will still pale in comparison - especially if Savinho leaves Manchester.

In other words, City's net spend since summer 2023 is lower than Arsenal's and they have had greater success. This is now the conversation are in.

They are among the elite and will be treated as such. Unlike City and Guardiola, who built from a much stronger base and foundation, Arsenal required a total rebuild.

Going back to Arteta's arrival, when City were coming off the back of putting up 100 points in a season, there is a tiny disparity in spending. Adjusting for conversion, City are at around £990million since January 2020 (Arteta's first window in charge).

Arsenal come in at £930million on new players. That includes the squad forming 2020 and 2021 windows with Thomas Partey, Gabriel Magalhaes, Aaron Ramsdale, and Ben White. It does not count Nicolas Pepe or William Saliba.

Taking the net spend and City again come out much lower. Since 2020, City have sold almost £570million worth of players, taking their net spend to around £420million.

Arsenal have sold less than £192million, leaving net spend at £738million. This is a huge difference and shows why there is now increasing pressure for trophies to follow.

Again, it must be pointed out that City did not have to reset culturally or in a sporting sense like Arsenal did, but with the sheer size of backing in recent years from Edu Gaspar and now Andrea Berta, Arteta has little excuse. It has led to a sense of freezing within some of the fanbase.

Arsenal are now playing with such fine margins that there is no room for error. That has altered the atmosphere and environment, shifting the emotions. Positivity around this summer, which will now conclude with Eze coming in alongside the striker that most wanted, promises to turn that dial back again for the good.

Arteta knows that with his ideal summer carried out, and Arsenal spending at an unprecedented rate for the club, there will be no room to hide. Eze is a blessing and offers a chance to best use the investments, but will also crank up the attention.

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