London. Until Tuesday Eberechi Eze's short Arsenal career had been most notable for him scoring five goals in two games against north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, the club he almost joined last summer.
Often consigned to the bench, the 60 million pounds ($80 million) signing from Crystal Palace has given fleeting glimpses of his talent but as spring arrives, he is blossoming.
The England attacking midfielder demonstrated why Arsenal signed him on Tuesday, scoring a sublime opening goal in a 2-0 Champions League victory over Bayer Leverkusen that sent Mikel Arteta's side into the quarter-finals.
Receiving a pass from Leandro Trossard outside the penalty area, Eze's first touch set the ball up and after turning sweetly he lashed a right-footed shot into the roof of the net that visiting keeper Janis Blaswich barely saw.
Each replay was met with oos and aahs from the Emirates Stadium crowd and even his team mates looked stunned at the ferocity of Eze's thunderbolt. "He's got one of the best shots I've seen left foot and right foot," Arsenal's other goalscorer Declan Rice said. "We need to keep getting him in those areas, because honestly, he's frightening. There's not many players I've seen that hit the ball better than him." Apart from his five against Tottenham and one against his former club Crystal Palace, Eze's only other goals so far this season were against lower-league Port Vale and Mansfield Town in the League Cup and FA Cup respectively. But the 27-year-old is now becoming an integral part of Arsenal's attacking unit at just the right time as they close in on silverware in four competitions.
"We needed a magical moment from Ebs, a wonderful strike to give us the lead," Arteta said. "He is playing every three days, he has rhythm, has an understanding with the players and this (goal) is why he is here.
"I think he's building a better chemistry, a better understanding with all of them. We start to understand him as well much better. When you start to make a good game, a good action, an action like that when you're in the game that lifts your confidence as well. That's what every player needs." Arsenal face Manchester City in Sunday's League Cup final as they seek their first silverware since 2020 and Eze will hope he can have the same impact as in his first Wembley final.
Last May, his sumptuous goal against Man City in the FA Cup final earned Palace their first major trophy.
Guardiola laments red card after third straight exit to Real Madrid
Pep Guardiola cut a familiar figure on Tuesday, proud of his team's fight, frustrated by the circumstances and insistent that Manchester City's future remains bright despite a third straight Champions League elimination at the hands of Real Madrid.
After losing the first leg 3-0, City conceded a penalty and were reduced to 10 men after 22 minutes of Tuesday's return fixture after Captain Bernardo Silva's handball. That made an improbable task virtually unmanageable, and Guardiola did not hide how much that moment coloured everything that followed.
"(The players) have always shown (spirit)," Guardiola said. "But after 3-0 and after 4-0 and 10 against 11, it was impossible.
"But the future will be bright and next season we'll be back." He lamented that Tuesday's second leg of the last-16 tie never got the true test he felt his side had earned.
"I'm going to sleep and tomorrow let me challenge Madrid over 180 minutes 11 against 11. I wanted that feeling. That's all," Guardiola said. "We are always really good but 10 against 11 for 75 minutes, if you are one or two up on aggregate ok, but when you are 4-0 down, it is more complicated." Guardiola stressed the importance of experience for a squad undergoing transition. "Next season I don't know what happens but (Abdukodir) Khusanov, Rayan Cherki, it is the first time playing Champions League, Antoine Semenyo. It needs time," he said.
"There's a lot of new players. But I saw many good things, we said 3-0 was almost impossible, but let's try it."
With a League Cup final against Arsenal looming on Sunday and a Premier League run‑in still ahead, he urged focus rather than despair.
"We have a final on Sunday, we still have to fight and finish well in the Premier League (second-placed City are nine points behind Arsenal with a game in hand). Next season we will be back in the Champions League."
Asked about his own future, Guardiola, whose contract runs through the summer of 2027, said with a smile: "When I retire in ten years."
He brushed off suggestions that a single Champions League title in his tenure at City was not enough.
"Everybody wants to fire me! I have to win six Champions Leagues to be recognised,” he said.
He acknowledged that Real Madrid, where anything short of winning is judged harshly, operate under a different pressure.
