Daily Cannon

Eberechi Eze has admitted he was prepared to move to Tottenham Hotspur this summer, but only up until Arsenal came in for him.

One of the major transfer sagas of the summer surrounded the future of Eberechi Eze. Despite initial reports of interest from Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur, the midfielder spent a long time waiting for a formal offer to be made.

When that concrete interest eventually arrived, it was from Spurs, with Arsenal’s north London rivals reeling from the loss of James Maddison.

For at least a few days, it looked like Eze really would sign for Tottenham, but negotiations dragged on a bit. Then Arsenal entered the race and quickly wrapped up a deal.

Speaking at an event this week, Eze admitted that he was considering the Spurs move, but only until the Gunners officially entered the race.

“I was prepared to go to Tottenham, but from the moment Arsenal came, it was always going to be them,” Eze said (via The Athletic). “My first (senior) Arsenal game was special. It almost didn’t feel real because it’s something I’ve been dreaming of for a long time.

“Playing for Arsenal from eight to 13, it’s been in the back of my mind wanting to go back. It felt like the realisation of a dream.”

Eze has made a solid start to life at Arsenal, scoring once and assisting three times in his first 10 appearances. More importantly, the Gunners have won all but two of those matches to sit top of the Premier League with a 100% record in the Champions League.

There will be inevitable comparisons with Xavi Simons, who was Spurs’ second choice after failing to sign Eze. But the Dutch international has just one assist and no goals in his first nine matches for Tottenham, who are sixth in the league with just one win from three in Europe.

The Eze summer transfer saga will certainly add an extra element of spice to the north London derby next month.

A photo of Tottenham Hotspur star Djed Spence has emerged showing the player celebrating Arsenal’s 2015 FA Cup win over Aston Villa.

A photo shared on social media on Monday showed Tottenham Hotspur’s Djed Spence as a teenager, celebrating Arsenal’s FA Cup win over Aston Villa.

Spence can be seen draped in an Arsenal scarf standing on the pitch at the Emirates Stadium, where the club were holding a fan screening of the final.

The future Premier League defender would have been 14 at the time, and he was clearly a follower of the Gunners, with rumours suggesting he was watching the game with his father. Now a starter for Tottenham Hotspur, there are evidently some divided loyalties in the Spence family.

Spence certainly wouldn’t be the first Spurs player to have supported Arsenal in the past.

There was that famous picture of Harry Kane celebrating the Gunners’ Premier League title win in 2004, and Matt Doherty’s transfer to Spurs was announced by the club with a clip of the player deleting pro-Arsenal tweets from his Twitter account.

Much as Spurs fans would hate to admit it, Arsenal have been the dominant force in north London throughout most of their players’ lives. None of the current squad had been born the last time Spurs won the league in 1961, nor when they last won the FA Cup in 1991.

If a young Harry Kane wanted to see a title-winning team from north London, it was Arsenal. And if a young Djed Spence wanted to see a local FA Cup-winning team, that was Arsenal too.

Maybe in another 10 years we’ll have some professional players who were boyhood Spurs fans and can recall the glory of winning the Europa League over one of the worst Manchester United sides in living memory, but not just yet.

A photo of Tottenham Hotspur star Djed Spence has emerged showing the player celebrating Arsenal’s 2015 FA Cup win over Aston Villa.

A photo shared on social media on Monday showed Tottenham Hotspur’s Djed Spence as a teenager, celebrating Arsenal’s FA Cup win over Aston Villa.

Spence can be seen draped in an Arsenal scarf standing on the pitch at the Emirates Stadium, where the club were holding a fan screening of the final.

The future Premier League defender would have been 14 at the time, and he was clearly a follower of the Gunners, with rumours suggesting he was watching the game with his father. Now a starter for Tottenham Hotspur, there are evidently some divided loyalties in the Spence family.

Spence certainly wouldn’t be the first Spurs player to have supported Arsenal in the past.

There was that famous picture of Harry Kane celebrating the Gunners’ Premier League title win in 2004, and Matt Doherty’s transfer to Spurs was announced by the club with a clip of the player deleting pro-Arsenal tweets from his Twitter account.

Much as Spurs fans would hate to admit it, Arsenal have been the dominant force in north London throughout most of their players’ lives. None of the current squad had been born the last time Spurs won the league in 1961, nor when they last won the FA Cup in 1991.

If a young Harry Kane wanted to see a title-winning team from north London, it was Arsenal. And if a young Djed Spence wanted to see a local FA Cup-winning team, that was Arsenal too.

Maybe in another 10 years we’ll have some professional players who were boyhood Spurs fans and can recall the glory of winning the Europa League over one of the worst Manchester United sides in living memory, but not just yet.

As Eberechi Eze closes in on finalising his move to Arsenal, there’s more than a hint of bitterness from the other side of north London.

Arsenal Fixtures News report on social media that Gunners legend Ian Wright was filming with Eze late on Friday night, with Wright also having swapped Crystal Palace for Arsenal back in the 90s.

Yet the news hasn’t gone over so well at Tottenham Hotspur, with the other north London club seeing their own move for Eze hijacked at the last moment.

Phil McNulty reported for the BBC earlier this week that Spurs thought they had the Eze deal all wrapped up, and Arsenal’s hijack delivered a devastating psychological blow to their local rivals.

As if to rub salt in the wounds, Spurs had reached an agreement with Palace that Eze could play for the club one last time in their Europa Conference League qualifier on Thursday.

But when Arsenal agreed a deal, Eze sat out of the match instead.

Speaking ahead of Spurs’ match against Manchester City this weekend, manager Thomas Frank seemed to imply they didn’t want Eze anyway.

“To make it very, very clear, I don’t want any players that don’t want to come to the club,” Frank said. “Who don’t want to wear this fantastic badge. We don’t want them here.

“That’s very clear and I’m also pretty sure that the fans will feel the same. If they [the signings] don’t want to put the fantastic shirt over their head, play for the badge, play for the club, really enjoy it, no problem. We don’t want them.”

Yet Matt Law had reported for The Telegraph earlier in the week that Spurs felt they had done “everything possible” to sign Eze, in spite of consistent reports all summer that he’d prefer Arsenal.

It seems Frank and co. only came to the conclusion that they didn’t want the player after all hope of signing him was gone.

The Spurs fans, for their part, aren’t doing much to hide their bitterness at the missed transfer. After an Arsenal fan painted a mural of Eze in the tunnel outside the Emirates on Wednesday night (shown above), Spurs supporters seemingly vandalised it on Friday.

The imminent official announcement is sure to be sickening to the fanbase of a club that truly believed they were the favourites as recently as Wednesday morning.

Tottenham thought they had their man, but a carefully executed plan and perfect timing saw Arsenal step in to snatch Eberechi Eze from under their noses.

The headlines have been about a dramatic late hijack, but the truth of Arsenal’s move for Eberechi Eze is that the club had already positioned themselves well before Tottenham Hotspur believed they were close to sealing the deal.

What looked like a last-minute ambush was in fact the culmination of weeks of careful planning, timed to exploit Spurs’ hesitation and to capitalise on Arsenal’s own sudden need.

Arsenal struck the broad outline of an agreement with Crystal Palace as early as Sunday 10 August, keeping it deliberately quiet while Spurs continued their public, laboured negotiations.

Daniel Levy’s talks with Steve Parish stalled repeatedly over add-ons and the structure of payments. Tottenham were convinced they were edging towards agreement, but Palace, well aware Arsenal were circling, let the discussions drag on.

With Kai Havertz’s injury looking like it will leave a hole in Mikel Arteta’s squad, Arsenal pressed the button.

On Wednesday 20 August, having already laid the groundwork, they accelerated their pursuit and activated the deal.

The offer was decisive: £60 million plus £7.5 million in add-ons, a package that not only matched Eze’s release clause but surpassed what Tottenham were willing to commit.

Eze’s preference mattered too.

While open to a move to Tottenham, he had grown up an Arsenal supporter, leaving the Academy in tears when he was released in 2011 as a young teenager, and the chance to play for the club of his childhood tipped the balance once Arsenal’s intent became clear.

Spurs’ confidence evaporated overnight.

Relationships also played their part. Arsenal’s executive Tim Lewis has a long-standing professional rapport with Parish, and the Gunners were willing to sweeten the deal further by offering players Palace admired, such as Jakub Kiwior, either on loan or permanently.

Tottenham, by contrast, were left hamstrung by the rigid structure of Levy’s approach.

In the end, Tottenham were outmanoeuvred once again.

They had the time, they had the talks, and they thought they had the player, but Arsenal had already secured the key pieces in advance.

What unfolded was less a smash-and-grab but a demonstration of patience, leverage, and timing.

Arsenal are seemingly out of the race to sign Eberechi Eze, with only Tottenham Hotspur still pursuing the Crystal Palace man at this stage.

David Ornstein reports for The Athletic that Tottenham Hotspur are now in a one-horse race for Eberechi Eze, suggesting Arsenal are no longer in contention to sign the Crystal Palace player.

Though Spurs are yet to reach an agreement for Eze’s transfer, talks are continuing and there’s a “good chance” the move goes ahead.

Ornstein told NBC Sports at the weekend that Arsenal’s pursuit of Eze was linked to the potential departure of Ethan Nwaneri.

With Nwaneri choosing to stay, the Gunners were unlikely to move for Eze unless the price came down. Ornstein added: “It’s not going to.”

Fabrizio Romano had broken the news on Monday that Spurs and Palace chairmans Daniel Levy and Steve Parish were in direct talks over Eze that day.

Eze had already informed Palace of his desire to move, with Spurs reportedly willing to offer a fixed fee of £55m with £5m in add-ons, below the player’s release clause of £60m plus £8m in add-ons.

That release clause has expired anyway, so Spurs’ only option is to negotiate a deal with Palace. But the expectation has always been that Palace would want a fee in the region of the clause even after its expiry, perhaps explaining why Monday’s talks haven’t yet led to a successful conclusion.

Arsenal had been linked with Eze throughout the summer window, but the Gunners don’t seem to have taken any steps to formalise that interest.

For Palace’s part, Ornstein reports that they’ve started to make moves for potential replacements, approaching Club Brugge over Christos Tzolis and Leicester City over Bilal El Khannouss.

Tottenham Hotspur are holding direct talks with Crystal Palace today over the potential transfer of Eberechi Eze, with Arsenal’s chances of a deal appearing to fade.

Fabrizio Romano reports that Tottenham Hotspur and Crystal Palace chairmans Daniel Levy and Steve Parish are holding direct talks over Eberechi Eze today. Eze has already informed Palace of his desire to move, so it’s just about reaching a fee agreement now.

Spurs are reportedly willing to offer a fixed fee of £55m with £5m in add-ons, below the player’s release clause of £60m plus £8m in add-ons.

That release clause has expired anyway, so Spurs’ only option is to negotiate a deal with Palace. But the expectation has always been that Palace would want a fee in the region of the clause even after its expiry.

Arsenal have also been linked with Eze throughout the summer window, but the Gunners don’t seem to have taken any steps to formalise that interest ahead of the final fortnight of the summer transfer window.

For Palace’s part, they’ve started to make moves for potential replacements, approaching Club Brugge over Christos Tzolis and Leicester City over Bilal El Khannouss. David Ornstein reported for The Athletic last week that both are serious candidates to replace Eze if he leaves.

Yet Brugge have already rejected one bid for Tzolis, who recently signed a new deal, so he may not be a straightforward signing.

Reports have always suggested that Arsenal would need to make sales before continuing to sign players, having already brought in six first-team players this summer.

Their only sales so far are Nuno Tavares and Marquinhos, both of whom were already out on loan with purchase options before the summer even began.

With outgoings moving so slowly, Arsenal don’t seem to be in a position to enter the bidding for Eze, whether they plan to or not.

Arsenal’s interest in Eberechi Eze remains despite Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit, but the Gunners can’t make a move until after they sell, according to a report.

Charles Watts reports for CaughtOffside that Arsenal’s interest in Eberechi Eze has never gone away, with the Gunners remaining keen on the midfielder throughout the summer.

Yet it’s always been a deal for the end of the summer window, with the focus currently on sales. Watts reports that a move for Eze feels unlikely until players leave, and nothing is close on that front yet.

As a result, Tottenham Hotspur are in a better position to complete the signing. They seem willing to a deal now, driven by the recent injury to James Maddison.

The Beautiful Game Podcast reported on Tuesday night that Arsenal remain in the race for Eze, but Spurs are currently the more advanced of the two clubs after formalising contact. The report added that the expectation is that a deal could be done under the player’s £68m release clause.

Yet Matt Barlow reports for the Scottish Daily Mail that Arsenal’s interest in Eze has faded “for the time being”, and that though the player was up for joining the Gunners, he’s also interested in the Spurs move.

An Arsenal sale or two in the coming week or two could change the picture and throw the Gunners back into the mix with renewed enthusiasm. But for the time being, Spurs look set to capitalise on the delays from their north London rivals.

Eze made his first appearance of the new campaign in Crystal Palace’s Community Shield win over Liverpool on Sunday, having scored Palace’s winner in the FA Cup final to earn a second Wembley appearance for the club in the first place.

The 27-year-old received positive reviews for his performance despite missing a penalty in the decisive shootout. Palace begin their Premier League season with a match away to Chelsea on Sunday, August 17th.

Leandro Trossard appeared to pick up an injury during Arsenal’s pre-season friendly against Tottenham Hotspur, managing just 17 minutes on the pitch.

Leandro Trossard wasn’t named in the starting lineup for Arsenal’s pre-season match against Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday, but the winger was introduced in the 68th minute with his team 1-0 down.

Yet despite his substitution occurring midway through the second half, Trossard didn’t complete the match, and he was forced off for Reiss Nelson in the 85th minute following an injury.

The setback is a blow for Arsenal, both because it reduces the team’s wide options and also it potentially rules out one of their more sellable assets in the remainder of the transfer window.

Given the primary goal of pre-season is generally to build fitness, Arsenal’s preparations for the new campaign have been somewhat disastrous.

Gabriel Magalhaes suffered a (hopefully minor) injury setback before the trip to Singapore, Riccardo Calafiori picked up an injury against Newcastle United, Kepa Arrizabalaga picked up a training injury, and now Trossard is seemingly injured as well.

There was even some minor concern about Bukayo Saka on Thursday, as he went down after a collision and was immediately withdrawn. Though Arsenal were already preparing substitutes and Saka may have been in line to come off anyway.

The AC Milan game is the only one everyone appeared to come through unscathed, and Arsenal definitely can’t afford further setbacks in their final two friendlies against Villarreal and Athletic Club.

The upside is that both of those matches will be back on the pitch at the Emirates Stadium. The poor quality pitches on tour have likely played some role in the injury issues so far, but that won’t apply to the remainder of pre-season.

Arsenal summer signing Kepa Arrizabalaga has picked up an injury, missing out on the friendly match against Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday.

Arsenal’s squad to face Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday was missing a few first-team players, with Gabriel Magalhaes still absent through injury and Riccardo Calafiori missing out with the minor setback he picked up in the previous friendly against Newcastle United.

Jurrien Timber has recently returned to first-team training, but the match also came too soon for him to be involved.

Yet one unexpected absentee was Kepa Arrizabalaga, who had featured in both of Arsenal’s previous friendly matches in Singapore.

The goalkeeper was also involved in Arsenal’s open training session in Hong Kong, but Tom Canton reports that he picked up an injury during the session.

Though details on the injury are scarce at the moment, one positive sign was that Kepa was seen arriving for the match with the squad without any obvious strapping or protective gear.

With any luck, Kepa, Timber, and Calafiori are all simply victims of an abundance of caution, and Arsenal are just unwilling to take any risks for a pre-season fixture.