Eberechi Eze: Crystal Palace make late U-turn after agreeing Arsenal transfer

Eberechi Eze will be denied a chance to say goodbye to the Crystal Palace fans in a match after it was agreed he would sit out on their Conference League play-off.

Eze agreed personal terms with Arsenal on Wednesday night after the Gunners told Palace they would pay £60million plus £7.5m in add-ons for the midfielder. The 27-year-old had previously looked set to join Tottenham, but a delay in getting a deal done allowed Arsenal to pounce after an injury to Kai Havertz.

Palace had put the brakes on a deal with Spurs because they wanted to start Eze in their match against Fredrikstad in the Conference League play-offs on Thursday night. Palace host the Norwegian side at Selhurst Park in the first leg at 8pm in what could have become Eze’s final appearance for the club.

However, with a medical booked with Arsenal in the next few days, there was reluctance from both sides to let him play. With so much money on the line, the decision has reportedly been made to allow Eze to watch the game from the Selhurst Park stands.

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Palace have agreed a club-record sale and cannot risk an injury at this late stage. Arsenal have already spent over £200m to sign Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi, Noni Madueke, Cristhian Mosquera, Christian Norgaard and Kepa Arrizabalaga and have now committed to increase their spending even further.

Palace manager Oliver Glasner has consistently praised Eze and captain Marc Guehi, who is a target for Liverpool, over the way they have conducted themselves in recent weeks. But the selection decision may have been taken out of his hands on Thursday.

Chairman Steve Parish conducted talks with his Spurs counterpart Daniel Levy before Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta and vice-chairman Tim Lewis turned the tables. They quickly agreed to the Eagles’ terms to get a deal done and a medical is now expected to take place before the weekend.

Eze has made 167 appearances for Palace since joining the club from Queens Park Rangers in 2020 in a deal worth £17m and has a strong connection with the fans. He trained as usual on Wednesday and was expecting to play after starting the 0-0 draw with Chelsea on Sunday.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday, Glasner said: "Many of you were surprised he (Eze) and Marc started against Chelsea, you may be surprised they start tomorrow, but they are committed to the team.

“They will play a crucial part for as long as they are here, they are committed to the team. If they leave, they want to leave as the guys who gave 100 per cent to Crystal Palace.”

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