Former Arsenal captain William Gallas says it was a no-brainer decision for Eberechi Eze to choose the Gunners over Tottenham Hotspur this summer.
Spurs were close to signing the England international this week, but Arsenal decided to hijack their pursuit after a knee injury to Kai Havertz.
Eze has already agreed on personal terms with the Gunners, and he is expected to undergo his medical tomorrow before penning a long-term deal.
When asked about the move, Gallas said that the 27-year-old has more chances to win trophies at Arsenal despite Spurs’ Europa League success last season.
He said: “If you’re Eze, you don’t want to go from Crystal Palace, where you were the main guy, to move to one of the biggest clubs if you’re not going to play much.
“You don’t want to join a club and become frustrated with your minutes. Eze will try to find the best solution for himself.
“Even if Spurs won the Europa League last year, you probably have more chances to win things at Arsenal over the next few years.
Does he want to play every week or does he want to get his hands on more trophies?”
Gallas added that Arsenal have no excuses after the huge outlay on new signings.
The Frenchman believes manager Mikel Arteta has sufficient squad depth after the summer spending, and the pressure will be higher on the 43-year-old to deliver trophies this term.
Gallas added: “That is what I and the Arsenal fans were waiting for. They have the striker now in Gyokeres. Right now, they have so many choices.
“If one of the first 11 is injured, Arteta has so many choices. So they don’t have any more excuses. If they don’t win the Premier League, nobody can have any excuses about Arsenal.
“If Arsenal doesn’t win the Premier League this season, I don’t want to hear anything about injuries, or the referee, or a red card.
Even if Saka or another player gets injured, they need to find a way of working around it.
“So that’s why now I think the pressure will be higher on Mikel Arteta than it has been in the last two years. He’s got to deliver something special for Arsenal this season.”
Arsenal have had an unprecedented summer of spending under Arteta. They have spent more than £260 million on the acquisition of seven players, including Eze.
Viktor Gyokeres, Noni Madueke and Eze have been signed to freshen up the attack. Gyokeres should be an undisputed starter upfront, now that Havertz is injured.
Eze could be seen as a left-wing solution with Martin Odegaard being an undisputed starter in the number 10 position. The same can be said for Madueke too.
Madueke is a specialist right winger, but has been tried on the left wing in his early Arsenal career, as Bukayo Saka is guaranteed to start every game on the right.
Arsenal have had concerns with the lack of game-changing options off the bench in the past, but they no longer have the same issue after the summer transfer activity.
There is solid competition for every attacking position. Arteta has the opportunity to change things, suppose his regular starters have an off day in certain games.
Havertz’s injury leaves the club short up top, but Arteta still has the choice to field Leandro Trossard, Gabriel Martinelli or Mikel Merino if Gyokeres can’t deliver.
Merino can provide the same aerial presence as Havertz in the number nine role on the back of last season’s success. He netted seven goals as a centre-forward.
Hence, an injury or two can’t be termed as an excuse. The onus is on Arteta to end the club’s five-year trophy drought with some form of silverware this campaign.
