‘No time to lose’ – Eberechi Eze has the quality to succeed at Arsenal – but he must fix flaw in his game

Eberechi Eze must chip in with his defensive duties if he wants to succeed at Arsenal – he’s not at Crystal Palace anymore.

That’s the view of Gunners legend Martin Keown, who believes the 27-year-old has all the the talent to be a huge hit at the Emirates, but needs to finely tweak his game.

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Big things were expected of the 16-cap England international when he linked up with Arsenal from the Eagles in a deal rising to £67.5million last summer.

But the attacking midfielder has endured a slow start to life at his boyhood club so far, with his first Premier League goal coming on his seventh outing – against Palace.

Gooners thought there would be an upturn in form after he became the first Arsenal player since Alan Sunderland in December 1978 to score a hat-trick against Tottenham Hotspur.

But since that north London derby in November, Eze hasn’t found the back of the net, and has started in the top-flight just four more times.

Question marks have been raised as to whether he suits Mikel Arteta‘s system as a result of his inconsistent displays.

However, he looked back to his best in Sunday’s 4-0 FA Cup fourth round win over Wigan in which he registered two first half assists.

It brings his total tally to a respectable 11 goal contributions [five goals, six assists] in all competitions, with Keown confident he will recapture the form he showcased at Selhurst Park.

Not so Eze

Speaking on the White and Jordan show on Monday, the Arsenal Invincible was asked whether Arteta trusts Eze enough to start him a title-deciding match, leading Keown to state he must work in helping his side out defensively.

He said: “I just think this is a case of him actually understanding his role and responsibility in the team.

“So the game against Brentford [1-1 draw which saw him replaced at half-time], I didn’t think he was going to press the ball in the same way that [Martin] Odegaard did, and that’s a very important thing that you do.

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“You keep your opponent at arm’s length, if you go and press at source, you stop them coming at you, Eze wasn’t doing that.

“Odegaard immediately did that when he came on, and then of course, you couldn’t get him on the ball.

“You’ve got to make your mark at a football club, there’s no time to lose, and I think he’s just making that adaptation, going from Palace to Arsenal.”

Keown added: “Once he understands what’s involved, the work rate, the energy levels, then I can see a big future for him.”

The 59-year-old then detailed why Eze isn’t allowed the luxury he was afforded in south London in Arteta’s 4-1-2-3 system.

He explained: “When he played at Palace, he had two sitting midfield players sat behind him, and him and [Ismaila] Sarr could play very effectively.

“They just sort of sat in the pockets, and he could play his football higher up the pitch.

“But he got into the habit of not really doing the defensive side of the game with that luxury position.

“At Arsenal, they play with one sitter and two either side in midfield, or he plays on the wing.

“Because the manager likes to have two fixed wingers who kind of occupy the full-backs and create that space inside of that, that’s why he’s not really getting enough football at the moment because he doesn’t seem to be able to do the defensive side of the game.

“Once he understands that, and takes it on board, it’s all there for him, but really, you want him in the final third.

“I think you want him near the goal because he has got something very special.

“He still has a big part to play, I wouldn’t be writing this player off right now.”

Eze will be hoping to build on his impressive display against Wigan away at Wolves on Wednesday night – live on talkSPORT.

Arsenal are looking to bounce back from their 1-1 draw at Brentford last week, with a win to see them extend their lead at the top over Manchester City to seven points.