As he contemplated his excellent performance in the Gunners 5-0 rout of Porto, Emmanuel Eboue was already looking ahead to Saturday’s crucial Premiership clash at Hull. Eboue came off the substitute’s bench to score Arsenal’s fourth goal on Tuesday, as he raced to tuck away Andrey Arshavin’s clever pass, and says the Ivorian, the trip to Humberside will have all his and his team-mates focus.

 

“For us at the moment, we’ve got some confidence in our team and then thank God we won and now we must forget this game and prepare for the game at Hull,” said Eboue who wasted no time in dedicating the win to a missing team mate. “It was important for us to win, and then I said thank you God to win this game and thank you for me because I scored this goal. We are so happy to win this game for Aaron Ramsey." Of his third strike of the season, Eboue just smiled, 

 

"Every day, my friends are laughing about me and asking about me because they say ‘Manu you do everything and then when you come in front of the goal keeper, you’re scared to score ’ But I tried to show them that I can score and I’m very happy.”

 

It has been a remarkable transformation in form and confidence for Eboue who suffered the indignity of being booed by his own fans last season, which at the time lead to many pointing to his exit from the Emirates Stadium. But having come to terms with his new role, the Gunners’ 27 says he is happy to play wherever Arsene Wenger wants him to play.

Diplomatic

Eboue was first choice at right back, a situation that changed with the arrival of Bacary Sagna in 2007. Wenger converted Eboue to primarily a right sided mid -fielder and that was where some of his positional sense from defence had to be compensated for. Eboue however prefers a more diplomatic response.

“For me it doesn’t matter (who plays at right back). I just want to play, so if I play, I’m happy and treated very well so. It doesn’t matter if Bacary Sagna plays or if I play, that’s in the team and that’s our team, so for me it doesn’t matter where I play. If the boss puts me at right back, I play, if he puts me in mid-field, I play.

Confidence

“ For us at the moment, we’ve got some confidence in our team and then thank God we won and now we forget this game and prepare for the game at Hull. Arsene Wenger is always there and when we got some bad days, he’s always there, so for me thank God he’s like our dad, so we are all happy to play this way."

Miracle

Arsenal go into the Hull game with Cesc Fabregas rated at only as 50-50 to recover from a hamstring injury, with his manager claiming it would be a miracle if he played at the KC Stadium. With Chelsea at home to West Ham, and Manchester United at home to Fulham on Sunday, Eboue knows that Arsenal must not lose concentration at any time in the title run-in, as Wenger eyes another title.

Settle

As Eboue puts it, the Champions League will have to be forgotten for the time being. “ Now we know we are in the quarter-final, we don’t think about that now. We have another big game against Hull, now we think about the league, so I think we must think about this game now.”

Another 3 points and another Eboue goal, yes he'd would happily settle for that.

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