While the biggest transfer story this week looked to be Alexander Isak’s damning statement about broken promises made to him at Newcastle United as he pushed to join Liverpool, one dramatic update has trumped it. Indeed, Arsenal appear to have hijacked Tottenham Hotspur’s move for Eberechi Eze.
It looked certain that the Crystal Palace winger was on his way to Spurs, but the Gunners have swooped in following an injury to Kai Havertz. The story, of course, is made all the more interesting as Mikel Arteta’s men are not only signing a great player, but they have also essentially stolen him from their biggest rivals.
It is somewhat reminiscent of when Emmanuel Petit nearly signed with Tottenham in 1997. After meeting with then-chairman Lord Alan Sugar in London, Arsenal got in contact and told him to come to Highbury. Unwittingly, Spurs then paid for the Frenchman’s taxi as he went off to sign for their north London rivals.
As such, for all of the excitement and the need for Arteta to land a new attack-minded player, fans have also been revelling in a certain sense of schadenfreude. Adding to this has been the reaction of Spurs supporters online.
Jamie O’Hara Rages Over Arsenal Deal for Eze
Perhaps most notably, former Tottenham man Jamie O’Hara could not hide his emotions as he spoke about the Eze saga not long after the news broke. The TalkSport host had a complete meltdown, making for an incredible spectacle as he was ultimately pulled off air. He said:
“I’m disappointed in Tottenham, I’m disappointed. we should have had this deal done weeks ago, we should have had it over the line and got it done.
“As soon as we started the season, we should have had Eze in the team, and do you know what, it serves us right. It serves Daniel Levy right, it serves Spurs right, it’s the same old Tottenham, it happens every single season, we’re penny-pinchers!
“It happened again, and we’re going to miss out on a top-quality player who’s proven in the Premier League. Just pay the money and get the player over the line! We got rid of [Heung-min] Son, [James] Maddison has done his ACL, we needed Eze, we needed him.
“It’s an absolute joke that we’re going to lose him to Arsenal of all teams, who are going to waltz in and pay and get it over the line in a couple of hours, it’s a joke.”
He was then asked if he would join Spurs over Arsenal if he was in Eze’s position. To which he replied: “I get it, Arsenal are a better team than us, they’re in a better position, I wouldn’t say they’re bigger.
“They’re doing well and that’s why Tottenham needed to get the deal done, so you can’t get hijacked. This is what happens, the bigger clubs come in and get the players, you don’t get the deal done, this is what’s going to happen.”
He then lost his cool so much, he swore live on air – as he started his sentence with “F*****g…” – forcing the broadcast to be pulled for a few seconds. As such, fans never got to hear how he concluded his rant.
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