The pain for Spurs was compounded by a player they thought they’d bought scoring a hat-trick against them three months later in a North London derby. First they were gazumped for Eberechi Eze, then crushed by him.
Eze’s complete performance to send Arsenal six points clear in the Premier League began with a gorgeous scoop of the ball over the heads of two Spurs defenders for Declan Rice to shoot. And it only got better from there.
Three stylish goals inside 35 minutes in a 4-1 win had the feel of a statement, the full arrival of an Arsenal ‘creative’ heading for Highbury and Islington folklore. There are other exciting players in this Arsenal squad but Eze, 27, has several assets that could elevate him in the crowd’s affections: his slightly tenuous ‘homegrown’ status, artistry, rocket finishing and work ethic.
England fans will feel the same – or should do. Watching him unpick Spurs here was to entertain visions of him performing the same service for Thomas Tuchel at next summer’s World Cup. With his unselfish outlook, he easily qualifies as a “good tourist” and will be hard to leave out if his hat-trick here was a sign that he’s now fully settled in this echelon.
Arsenal’s No 10 starts in the No 11 position but plays everywhere, floating and probing, for his own benefit - and that of his team. The first hat-trick in a North London derby since 1978 prompted no less a judge than Thierry Henry to say he played like a true centre-forward. Henry suggested the absence of a No 9 in Arsenal’s starting line-up allowed Eze to seize that role while also excelling as a wide man and creative midfielder.
A prodigal, who started with Arsenal but was discarded by them at 13 years old, Eze radiates a distinct sense of purpose. Even more educational than being sent round the leagues to prove yourself all over again is having a wife who’s a nurse in intensive care (ICU). That, he says, “has definitely grounded me.”
Eze is one of the league’s most engaging stars: ingenious but hard-working too, and representative of deep romance in sport. The lower leagues are peppered with elite academy players let go by Arsenal, Manchester United or Liverpool. Most remain in those lower tiers, making a decent living but never touching the high life their early promise placed within reach.
But Eze is one who came in from the cold. After being cut loose by Arsenal, released by Fulham and Reading, rejected by Bristol City and Sunderland after trials and then spurned by Millwall, he began the climb at Queens Park Rangers before moving to Crystal Palace for £17m. He says he cried when playing against Arsenal for another team months after being told he had no future there.
His last act at Palace was to help them win their first trophy in 120 years – this year’s FA Cup. Then, supposedly, he was heading across the Thames to Tottenham. A £60m fee with £7.5m add-ons had reportedly been agreed. Spurs waited, then received a shock. On 22 August he strode onto the Emirates pitch for the homecoming, later telling Sky in an interview: “I’m where I was meant to be.”
With five goals and three assists in 15 Arsenal appearances, Eze has made Kai Havertz’s absence through injury inconsequential, and offered Mikel Arteta a second No 10 alongside Martin Odegaard. The goals against Spurs were only the headline on a varied contribution. Moments before his hat-trick goal, he chased a long throw by the Tottenham goalkeeper all the way back to his own penalty area.
In the same Sky feature he spoke of Arsenal being “another level up” from all his previous experiences in football, and of being impressed by “the structures and processes in place” under Arteta. He said he enjoyed being “pushed” and having his “mind stretched” since joining the club. For him, the reject’s return is “part of God’s perfect plan.”
He even prayed before this derby for a hat-trick. Only four have been scored in competitive games between Arsenal and Spurs: Ted Drake for Arsenal in 1934, Terry Dyson for Spurs (1961), Arsenal’s Alan Sunderland in 1978 and now Eze.
For 36 minutes you could see Spurs thinking: this is going ok, we’ll stay in our own half in a massive block, tackle aggressively and chat about what we’ll have for dinner while the clock ticks down. Ten minutes later they were 3-0 down.
Their own goal was the best of the match. But even Richarlison’s chip over the Arsenal keeper from 40-yards was a piece of useless beauty. It was one of only three shots by Spurs, who lurched from low block to high energy when a hammering seemed to be on the cards. None of it could conceal the gulf between the sides.
Asked about the move to Tottenham he nearly made in August, Eze said: “Let’s not talk about that.” Spurs didn’t want to discuss it either.
Photograph by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images