Arsenal thrashed Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League, and despite playing a significant role in this resounding victory, pundit Rio Ferdinand believes Mikel Arteta isn’t getting the best out of a specific player in the Gunners’ squad.
The derby triumph leaves Arteta’s side five points clear at the summit of the English top flight with ten matches left to play, although chasers Manchester City have a game in hand.
City strolled to victory over Newcastle United on Saturday afternoon, and there is a general fear around the Emirates that Pep Guardiola’s team have started to build serious momentum.
That said, Arsenal will be confident after their emphatic result at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, as they prepare to take on Chelsea in N5 next week, in what will be one of their final games against the top six this term.
Rio Ferdinand explains why he thinks Arsenal aren’t getting the best out of Eberechi Eze
Eberechi Eze was outstanding in Arsenal’s win over Tottenham. The creative midfielder was deployed closer to Viktor Gyokeres than he usually is, allowing him to focus on impacting the game in the final third, rather than focusing on build-up.
Acrobatically giving the Gunners the lead, he then added to his growing tally against Spurs this campaign by tucking home another to make it 3-1 in the second period. Despite these goals, Ferdinand wasn’t overly impressed with Eze, claiming the England international ‘just had two moments in the game’.
The former Manchester United defender revealed his belief that Arteta’s use of the 27-year-old is actually holding the player back.
“I thought up until the goal he was quiet,” Ferdinand said on his YouTube channel.
“He just had two moments in the game. I think after the goal he improved, but I was talking to my mates in the WhatsApp group about it. Why are we not seeing the best of Eze? I think his starting position is too high.
“I know he’s doing that to pin back the Spurs backline. I get it. But it’s actually going against him being able to perform. He needs to see the game, face it and start probing.
“Little one-twos, draw the opponents out of their positions. Come and press me, and then play beyond them and run. A bit like for the goal he scored when Saka fluffed his lines a bit, and it fell to him, and he finished it.
“I think he’s a wonderful player and a player I’d pay to watch right now, 100% with Eze. But he’s playing more for the team than himself, and sometimes, if you’re going to win Championships, you have to sacrifice parts of your game for the team.”
Rio Ferdinand is wrong about Eberechi Eze at Arsenal
Ferdinand is right about one thing – Eze hasn’t been at his best for much of this season. That said, the pundit’s diagnosis of the problem is all wrong.
The ex-centre-back is convinced that Eze playing too high up the pitch is what is prohibiting him from influencing games. In actual fact, it’s almost the exact opposite. Arteta altered Eze’s role against Spurs, and it worked wonders.
🎙️ "He just picks on Spurs."
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) February 22, 2026
Ebere Eze gets ANOTHER! pic.twitter.com/mtRv3O5Jyi
The former Crystal Palace man has been tasked with dropping into deeper areas to help facilitate build-up for much of this season. This is where he is ineffective, as his primary attributes are centred around what he can do in the final third, rather than in the middle third.
Against Tottenham, Arteta clearly tried to get Eze in forward areas much more frequently, rather than having him drop deep. This gave the player the licence to remain in advanced areas, where he was able to get on the ball and produce intricate moments of magic in and around the box.
If Arteta replicates this system for the rest of the season, he might get significantly more out of Arsenal’s number ten moving forward.
