Eberechi Eze shone on his full debut for Arsenal.
The £68m signing from Crystal Palace was handed his first start for the Gunners by Mikel Arteta earlier on Saturday, and despite a fairly quiet opening 45 minutes, came to life in the second half to secure a 3-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
Eberechi Eze even grabbed an assist for Viktor Gyokeres to put the north Londoners two goals ahead, doing something Arsenal fans have not seen for over 13 years in the process.
Eberechi Eze becomes first English player to assist with their first chance created for Arsenal since Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain
Just 46 seconds after the restart, the new Arsenal No.10 delivered a crisp, low cross with his weaker left foot to provide Gyokeres with a tap-in.
It was actually the first chance Eze has ever created for Arsenal which was put away, leading Squawka to reveal that no other Englishman has managed to do this for the Gunners since Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in January 2012.
The Southampton academy graduate was handed a start by Arsene Wenger for the visit of Manchester United just months after his £15m arrival from Southampton in August 2011, and impressed as he provided an assist for Robin van Persie in a 2-1 defeat.
It is pleasing to see that Arteta has continued the tradition of handing chances to young talents, as Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly featured against Nottingham Forest too, while the precocious Max Dowman was on the bench.
How Eberechi Eze performed statistically in Arsenal 3-0 Nottingham Forest
Eze is arguably better when fielded centrally, but the 27-year-old still managed to shine on the left during his full debut for Arsenal.
| Category | Statistic |
|---|---|
| Top stats | |
| Goals | 0 |
| Assists | 1 |
| Total shots | 2 |
| Accurate passes | 20/24 (83%) |
| Chances created | 1 |
| Dribbles | 3/6 |
| Attack | |
| Touches | 41 |
| Accurate crosses | 0/2 |
| Dispossessed | 11 |
| Defence | |
| Tackles won | 0 |
| Clearances | 0 |
| Interceptions | 0 |
| Dribbled past | 0 |
| Duels | |
| Ground duels won | 4/7 |
| Aerial duels won | 1/1 |
| Was fouled | 1 |
| Fouls committed | 0 |
The man born in Greenwich completed three successful dribbles, also completing 20 of his attempted 24 passes with a success rate of 83%.
Eze – who rejected Tottenham – also displayed an impressive work ethic defensively, winning four of the seven ground duels he partook in, and also winning his only aerial duel.
If this is what the Londoner can do so early into his Arsenal career, the future should be very bright.
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