Goals All That’s Missing For ‘free’ Eberechi Eze As He Faces Crystal Palace

“For ever grateful, man, that’s really I consciousness – that will beryllium maine for life,” reflected Eberechi Eze connected his clip astatine Crystal Palace during an question and reply pinch Ian Wright erstwhile he signed for Arsenal. Wright, different southbound Londoner who made nan move, coincidentally astatine nan aforesaid property – 27 – successful September 1991, seemed nan cleanable personification pinch whom to stock what Eze described arsenic “the realisation of a dream we started 20 years agone arsenic a family”. Yet for a mini number of Palace supporters pinch very agelong memories it rekindled bitter feelings astir an incident that occurred astatine Highbury successful May 1993.

Wright had not held backmost aft scoring Arsenal’s victor connected his first quality against Steve Coppell’s broadside astatine Selhurst Park a fewer months earlier – “I celebrated because Palace fans were being nasty,” he later explained – and further soured nan narration by kissing nan badge erstwhile he gave his squad nan lead successful a lucifer his aged broadside desperately needed to triumph to debar relegation. “After I scored I retrieve Nigel Martyn saying: ‘Wrighty, what are you doing? You’re going to nonstop america down,’” he recalled.

In 2006, a 42-year-old and long-retired Wright, who had precocious been voted arsenic Palace’s subordinate of nan century, helped to hide nan hatchet pinch those who bore a grudge by kissing nan Palace badge aft scoring successful a kindness lucifer organised for his erstwhile teammate Geoff Thomas. “We had our problems for a while but I deliberation we’ve worked them retired now,” he said, moreover if immoderate proceed to disagree.

For Eze, who connected Sunday faces Palace for nan first clip since his £67.5m move, location are nary specified issues. As nan subordinate who scored nan extremity that secured Palace’s first awesome trophy successful nan FA Cup last successful May, he will ever person a typical spot successful nan club’s history. That was portion of an bonzer tally Wright would person been proud of, Eze scoring six goals successful his last 8 Premier League games and 3 successful nan FA Cup aft netting his first England goal against Latvia successful March.

Such scintillating shape played a cardinal domiciled successful persuading Arsenal to gazump Tottenham for nan signature of nan subordinate they rejected arsenic a teenager, though Eze has yet to people for them successful nan convention contempt going into this play having taken nan joint-most shots (18, adjacent pinch Nottingham Forest’s Morgan Gibbs-White) without uncovering nan net. That includes an quality for Palace against Chelsea connected nan opening time erstwhile his free-kick was controversially disallowed aft Marc Guéhi was adjudged to person been little than 1 metre from nan wall arsenic nan changeable was taken.

A solitary onslaught against Port Vale successful nan Carabao Cup is simply a disappointing return from 10 appearances for Arsenal, including 7 starts. It is possibly partially explained by nan truth that Eze has mostly been utilized successful a No 10 domiciled that he past filled astatine Queens Park Rangers alternatively than successful a withdrawn domiciled connected nan near of nan attack, wherever he was deployed by Oliver Glasner astatine Palace and which often meant he was capable to get connected nan extremity of Daniel Muñoz’s crosses, arsenic successful nan last against Manchester City astatine Wembley.

Eberechi Eze collapses to nan level successful ceremony aft Palace hit Manchester City successful nan FA Cup last acknowledgment to his goal. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

“As agelong arsenic I’m connected nan transportation and I’m fixed nan opportunity to play and definitive myself successful that situation past it doesn’t matter wherever I play,” Eze said successful his question and reply pinch Wright. “Of people [the manager] has ideas and things he wants. But for me, I’m free, man.”

Mikel Arteta’s consequence to disapproval that he played pinch nan handbrake connected successful Arsenal’s 1-1 tie pinch City past month, erstwhile Eze came disconnected nan chair to group up Gabriel Martinelli’s equaliser, has been to entrust Eze pinch replacing nan injured captain, Martin Ødegaard, arsenic nan imaginative hub. It has coincided pinch six consecutive victories. Another Eze extremity against Latvia this period and his awesome capacity against Atlético Madrid successful midweek person offered promising signs that nan goals will soon commencement to travel for him astatine Arsenal.

But if his Palace statistic are thing to spell by, that is much apt to hap successful nan caller year. Eze has scored 9 goals successful 68 Premier League games earlier 31 December astatine a ratio of 0.13 compared pinch 25 successful 85 (0.34) after. At nan commencement of past season, he scored against Chelsea successful August aft having different free-kick chalked disconnected contentiously successful nan opening crippled against Brentford and had to hold until 29 December for his second.

Whereas Guéhi was denied his move to Liverpool astatine nan past infinitesimal this summer, Glasner is understood not to person opposed Eze’s departure because he felt it gave Palace an opportunity to reinvest nan nine grounds fee. Palace person nan highest expected goals of immoderate Premier League club, Yéremy Pino having slotted consecutive into Eze’s domiciled since arriving from Villarreal, though nan Spain world has yet to people aliases registry an assistance successful nan convention contempt immoderate promising performances. Christantus Uche, who arrived connected deadline time connected an first indebtedness from nan Spanish broadside Getafe and must commencement 10 matches for Palace to trigger a £17m imperishable move, was near retired of nan squad to look Bournemouth aft arriving precocious backmost from world work pinch Nigeria past week and has played only 57 minutes.

A swift reunion pinch players pinch whom Eze made history for Palace successful May will make Sunday an affectional juncture for him. He told Wright, who had to hold until he was 34 to triumph nan title successful his last play astatine Arsenal, that nan FA Cup triumph had fixed him nan sensation for trophies.

“I’ve seen what you tin do, not conscionable for your teammates aliases nan staff,” he said. “But I tin spot what you tin do to group erstwhile you triumph and you bring that benignant of joyousness to a place. That’s my aim.”

Just don’t expect him to observe if he scores against Palace.