Mikel Arteta has revealed that Ebereechi Eze called him when he was about to join Tottenham.
Arsenal left their North London rivals red on Wednesday evening, when they in principle reached an agreement with Crystal Palace to sign Eze, 27.
Eze looked traces after they spent 10 days negotiating a deal worth £ 55 million plus add-on-us for Arsenal to creep in at the last minute with an offer worth £ 67.5 million.
The 27-year-old completed the move to Arsenal on Saturday and was unveiled for fans for their 5-0 win over Leeds.
A report from the athletic claims that Eze came into contact with Mikel Arteta just when he was about to commit to Tottenham.
When asked if it was true, Arteta said: 'That shows how much he wanted to come.
'It is sometimes very different because you want to be very open and transparent with the players, because they have to make decisions in their career, but I am happy to have him.
“I am very happy to have him, I can see how much it means to him and his whole family.”
Daily Mail Sport understands that Spurs had agreed on Wednesday to Palace's transfer requirements and also made the conditions with Eze who wanted to complete the move to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at that stage.
But Crystal Palace is supposed to have insisted that Eze will remain available for their play-off first-stage from the Conference League on the Norwegian side Fredrikstad on Thursday evening, which gave Arsenal the chance to dive into.
But in the end Eze didn't play. Oliver Glasner expected him to have a broadcast, but revealed that the winger would be sick on the morning of the game.
He has signed a four -year -old deal with the Emirates, with the option of another year and will wear the NO 10 shirt.
Eze could make his debut when Arsenal travels to Anfield next Sunday to tackle title finances Liverpool.