Eberechi Eze reacted with a sheepish grin and quickly moved on when asked about his failed move to Tottenham Hotspur in the summer, after the Arsenal star and boyhood Gunners fan scored a stunning hat-trick in a 4-1 demolition of Spurs at the Emirates. Eze came close to completing a move to Arsenal's biggest rivals in the summer, before a late hijack saw the former Crystal Palace star complete his dream £67.5million ($88m) transfer.
Eze avoids Spurs question after dream derby day hat-trick
Eze was understandably reluctant to answer when asked by Sky Sports at full-time about the possibility that he may have been wearing different colours for Sunday’s North London Derby if things had gone differently.
The 27-year-old England international completed his dream move to his boyhood club in August and put in the performance of a lifetime as he scored past arch-rivals three times to earn the derby day match ball, reaching five goals for his new club in the process.
Bagging his side’s second goal in controversial circumstances just before half-time, Eze struck two goals from the edge of the box in the second period to secure a huge victory for Arsenal, which puts the Gunners six points clear at the top of the Premier League table – with second-placed Chelsea to come next weekend at Stamford Bridge.
Speaking post-match, Eze was quick to brush past the question regarding his high-profile transfer saga in the summer, where the Gunners completed a stunning hijack to secure a game-changing signing.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportEze's hilarious response to Spurs transfer question
“Let’s not speak about that”, said Eze when asked if he could have been wearing the opposition colours for the derby, breaking into a smile after his cheeky response live on Sky Sports. “I thought you might say that”, responded the reporter.
“That’s a good [feeling],” Eze said of emphatic derby victory. “Enjoyable day, happy to help the team and to win today is special.
“It feels special, man. I’m grateful again, this is what I pray for. I prayed for it today, a hat-trick, and I got it today so I’m grateful to God.”
Eze reflects on his favourite goal of match-winning treble
“That was the prayer today, a hat-trick, and God gave it to me. That’s faith. All my family is here again, which makes it even more special to do it in front of them," Eze continued.
When asked for his pick of the goals, Eze said: “They were all good, I don’t know. Maybe the second one, that was my favourite.
“Just the timing of it, it was the right time,” he continued. “Honestly, it’s just special, all of them are good for me, because I know that I’ve been working on the process to get in those positions, so it’s worked out.”
On scoring his first professional hat-trick, he added: “Yeah, it is. Special one. As I say, words can’t explain this one today.”
Getty Images Sport'Special day for us' – Arteta speaks
Mikel Arteta said to BBC Match of the Day:"It's a very special day for us. We knew the importance of the match and what it means to our fans. To be able to give them that joy, it's a beautiful day."
On Eze becoming the fourth-ever player to score a hat-trick in the North London derby: "That tells you about the difficulty and what he's done today. To be fair he could have scored four or five. He's a big player who can create magic moments which unbalance a team.
"We dominated every part of the game. We created massive chances and had a lot of actions that we were very close to scoring. We stayed patient.
"Whoever we put in there they do the jobs for us. This squad has the belief and quality to deliver consistently.
"We have really good momentum but you can see how difficult every game in the Premier League is. It's a long run, let's go game by game. Let's enjoy tonight, then we have Bayern here and Chelsea away. We have a tough week."