'I watch Arsenal transfer target every week - he won't solve Gunners' big problem'

Eberechi Eze is a hero to Crystal Palace fans like this journalist but where the England international might fit in at Arsenal is a mystery. Interest in the FA Cup-winning goalscorer was always likely this summer, but while Liverpool or Manchester United might have made perfect sense, interest from the Gunners raises alarm bells over his next move.

Nobody is going to begrudge Eze of a move to a bigger club this summer, regardless of whether Palace are allowed to compete in Europe amid an ongoing multi-club ownership dispute with UEFA. It even makes reasonable business sense for the South Londoners to sell over the coming months. Eze is 27, has two years remaining on his contract, and will still attract a big fee even if it is not quite his £68million release clause. There will be no bitterness from either party, with Palace likely to reinvest any money received into improving Oliver Glasner's squad.

Eze is a typical No. 10 who operates best when in central areas. Contrary to a seemingly popular belief among some Premier League fans, the former Queens Park Rangers star is not a winger.

Lacking the pace to beat a full-back one-versus-one out wide, Eze is instead at his best driving through the centre of the pitch. He passes players with a shimmy of the shoulders, a feint, or a sudden and unexpected change of direction.

He is a rare breed of direct-running attacking midfielders who are increasingly popular in the transfer market. Perhaps Arsenal do not have a player like him, but in a world of well-defined coaching philosophies and controlled tactical plans, it is fair to ask whether the Gunners need him in the first place. Their priorities are a winger, a striker and a defender. Spending over £60m on Eze would be a wayward use of resources.

There may be some use in Eze playing out wide against a low block, where wingers can rotate with midfielders to draw teams out of position. But this is not a tactic Arteta uses with much frequency. Left-back Myles Lewis-Skelly tends to adopt the attacking position in which Eze is most dangerous for Palace, on the left side of the edge of the penalty area.

Eze has excelled in the No. 10 position at Palace, first during Roy Hodgson's second spell in charge, and then in a 3-4-2-1 formation under Glasner. The latter point would have made him very well suited to Ruben Amorim's system at Man Utd. When he was used deeper in a midfield three under Patrick Vieira, his defensive weaknesses were exposed, and he spent large periods being introduced as a game-changing substitute.

Although United have generally targeted younger players during INEOS's tenure, it remains a surprise that they showed no significant interest in a rare player made for their way of playing. Instead, Matheus Cunha was signed from Wolves for a similar fee to the one it would have taken to prise Eze from Palace. I do not believe it is biased to claim that Eze's has a CV packed with far more match-defining moments in the biggest games than the Brazilian.

There might have been stronger interest from Liverpool had they failed to sign £116m German Florian Wirtz. Instead, it seems that a move to Arsenal is most likely, particularly with Tottenham said to be exploring other targets. A move to the Emirates Stadium would be an unnatural fit.