England defender Ezri Konsa said he “felt right at home from day one” after making an impressive Emirates Stadium debut for Arsenal in their 2-1 comeback victory over Chelsea on Sunday.
The summer signing from Aston Villa seamlessly partnered Gabriel at the heart of Arsenal’s defence, winning eight of 12 duels during the Premier League encounter.
It was Konsa’s best duel-winning figures in a Premier League match since December 2024.
The 28-year-old also produced one of the standout moments of his debut when he dispossessed Chelsea midfielder Morgan Rogers as the visitors attempted to launch a counter-attack, prompting a huge roar from the Emirates crowd.
Rogers, a former Aston Villa teammate and close friend of Konsa, found himself on the receiving end of a strong challenge from the Arsenal defender. Konsa, however, said their friendship did not matter once the game got underway.
“Rogers is a good friend of mine, but on the pitch, it’s a different story. I saw the opportunity to go in and make the tackle, and it came off,” Konsa told Arsenal’s website on Sunday.
Reflecting on his debut, Konsa said he thoroughly enjoyed his first London derby and praised the Arsenal supporters for their backing throughout the match.
“I really enjoyed the occasion. My first London derby and I thought the fans were fantastic, superb. They stayed behind us throughout the whole game; without them, these games are impossible,” he said.
Arsenal fell behind to an early goal from Rogers but fought back through Kai Havertz and Martin Odegaard to maintain their 100 per cent start to the Premier League season.
Konsa said Arsenal’s response to conceding early demonstrated the character and mentality within the squad.
“Conceding so early isn’t great, and I know we take a lot of pride here in keeping clean sheets, but I thought the reaction was second to none, it was fantastic. It just goes to show the character and the mentality of this team,” he said.
The defender, who joined Arsenal only a couple of weeks ago, said he had quickly settled into his new surroundings and was enjoying the club’s style of play.
“I felt right at home from day one. The boys have been top, the staff have been top. Like I said before in previous interviews, this style really suits me – I love the boss’ way of playing.
“The amount of quality that we have and the amount of quality I have around me makes things easier,” Konsa added.
Despite Arsenal’s strong start to the campaign, Konsa urged his teammates to remain focused and avoid getting carried away.
“I think it’s important you go into different games with confidence. We’ve started really well but it’s still early days. We’re going to take it game by game and day by day,” he said.
