Arsenal summer signing Eberechi Eze became the fourth player in history to score a hat-trick in the North London derby after helping the Gunners to a 4-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
The 27-year-old was in fine form against Spurs, and while his work ethic has impressed the coaches at Arsenal, patience has been required since his move from Crystal Palace.
Eze did not spend pre-season with the Gunners, which has made taking in all manager Mikel Arteta’s complex tactical instructions tricky.
The Spaniard’s instructions involve a lot of messages, and Arsenal staff believe Declan Rice also initially struggled with them in 2023, only taking his game to another level after Christmas when he had fully internalised the tactical demands of the Gunners boss.
One of many reasons that Arteta adores Jurrien Timber is because he got it all straight away, according to the Independent.
Arsenal academy graduate Max Dowman is said to be the same, but it is understandably rare.
Eze is starting to fully understand what Arteta wants from him, and staff believe the Spurs game was when things clicked for him.
He was free to play how he wanted at Palace as he was their most talented attacker and they played differently compared to Arsenal.
However, the England international needs to be absolutely efficient with attacking touches at the North London club as needlessly losing possession affects the structure of the team.
Eze has taken time to understand what Arteta demands of him, and his performance yesterday will be referenced for the rest of his career and afterwards.
Arsenal host Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday before a trip to Stamford Bridge to take on Chelsea on Sunday.
The Gunners attacker will be looking forward to impressing in those games and maintaining his form going forward, which would not be a problem as long as he keeps doing what Arteta wants.