Arsenal have beaten bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur to the signature of Crystal Palace talisman, Eberechi Eze, in a dramatic £60million swoop.
The Gunners struck a late agreement in principle with Palace on Wednesday night for a deal worth £60m plus £8m in add-ons, hijacking negotiations Spurs had been pursuing for over a week.
Eze, 27, is understood to favour Arsenal, where he began his youth career, despite Tottenham edging close to sealing the transfer earlier in the day.
Arsenal boss, Mikel Arteta, pushed for the move with Kai Havertz sidelined through injury, identifying the England international as the perfect cover.
Palace manager, Oliver Glasner, insists Eze will still feature in Thursday’s Conference League tie against Fredrikstad, but the player is keen on forcing through his Emirates switch before the September 1 transfer deadline.
Eze netted 14 goals last season, including the decisive strike in the FA Cup final win over Manchester City. The former QPR star joined Palace in 2020 for £19.5m and remains under contract until 2027.
