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It had to be him. Eberechi Eze would not have wished his first Arsenal Premier League goal to come against Crystal Palace. Partly because they are his former employers, but more because it means it has taken a while to arrive.
However, delayed gratification can be satisfying and Eze’s timing was impeccable. With Liverpool suffering a fourth consecutive league defeat at Brentford on Saturday night, Arsenal had a gap to extend. Opportunities such as Sunday presented must not be missed if a title is to be won.
But after his team had spent nearly an entire half offering up stodgy bread pudding when light and fluffy meringue was required, Eze provided the momentary magic that Mikel Arteta et al longed for.
Both feet off the ground, with the ball not quite settled nicely, Eze adjusted and struck a first-time shot that whipped the home crowd into delight. Three times the stadium announcer bellowed “Eberechi” into the north London air. Three times the call was met with a loud response. One-nil to the Arsenal.
And so, nine games in, Arteta is in the unusual and unexpected position of glancing into his wing-mirror and catching flashes of Bournemouth and Sunderland. Yes, you read that right.
More pertinently, despite August’s defeat at Anfield, one in which Arteta was criticised for driving with both handbrake and a steering lock on, the gap to Liverpool is now seven points.
Whereas in the not-too-distant past the Sunday late-lunch slot was a punishment for Arsenal’s failure to qualify for the Champions League, and shanks of lamb or briskets of beef were prioritised, those days are gone.
Now all fixtures carry both anticipation and expectation. There is a growing sense that this is Arsenal’s season. It has to be their season. If not now, when? The final whistle in west London late on Saturday was met by whooping and hollering in the pubs and sitting rooms of N5.
Those approaching the Emirates from Holloway Road tube station before the match were divided. Some were confident, cocky even, that title talk was allowable. For every one of them, though, there was a shusher, a voice of reason. In the middle of the Venn diagram sat those simply not yet prepared to utter the words aloud. For most of the first half, the doubters were proven right.
Until his goal, Eze was, but for his lime-green footwear, virtually unnoticeable. A couple of surges forward, a twist and a turn here, but little else. The one time he reached the edge of the area, Adam Wharton was there with a sliding challenge.
It is perhaps a tad unfair to single Eze out – his teammates hardly offered much sparkle – but given his £67.5m summer return to the club that rejected him as a 13-year-old, he was naturally spotlighted.
Arsenal’s first effort on goal did not come until the half-hour, when Leandro Trossard sorted his balance, weight and feet in the area to force a low, if regulation, save from Dean Henderson.
By then, Palace had enjoyed three efforts, albeit for a combined xG of 0.09. They had been solid and stoic, organised to within a fraction of a yard. Their supposedly adventurous 3-4-2-1 often was really a more reserved 5-4-1 but what does that matter? It was working. Their biggest opening came via a misplaced Martin Zubimendi pass. Ismaïla Sarr got his shot away, but Gabriel Magalhães was there to block.
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But virtually Palace’s first mistake led to them conceding. Jurrien Timber held off several gold shirts before eventually Daichi Kamada fouled him near the right touchline. Oliver Glasner turned and beat the air in frustration. He knew and so it proved. From Declan Rice’s free-kick, Eze scored. “Set piece again, olé, olé”.
The afternoon could have come tension-free soon after the break. A clever free-kick (what else?) ended with Rice clipping to the back post. Gabriel crashed his header off the bar, with Rice’s follow-up blocked by Henderson. From distance, Bukayo Saka curled the recycled ball just wide.
Arsenal did not just have possession now, but momentum and a little guile, too. Gabriel clipped a pass towards Trossard and, while his touch was heavy, he still got a shot-cum-cross into the six-yard box. Tyrick Mitchell cleared a fraction before Saka arrived.
Despite their dominance, home supporters grimaced when Glasner introduced Eddie Nketiah on the hour. Surely not?
But there was no turned tide. Instead, Gabriel gave everything to reach a back-post corner. The reward? A header that half the ground thought was in but actually went narrowly wide, plus a painful meeting with the upright.
Twenty minutes after appearing at his old ground, Nketiah burst down the left, doing Cristhian Mosquera – a half-time substitute for William Saliba, who had started despite pre-game injury doubts – for pace. Marc Guéhi could not steer his header from the corner goalward.
David Raya was not called into meaningful action and all that remained was for Eze to receive a standing ovation from every part of the ground.
Second; 2nd; 2nd; 1st? Hmm. TBC. But advantage Arsenal? You bet.
