Rio Ferdinand says Eberechi Eze has lost the selfishness that made him such a threat for Crystal Palace and the midfielder is ‘sacrificing parts of his game’ for the greater good at Arsenal.
Eze continued his outstanding start in north London derbies with a stunning double as Arsenal ran out comprehensive 4-1 victors at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.
The brace took Eze’s personal tally to five goals in his last two matches against Spurs, three months on from his hat-trick heroics in the reverse fixture at the Emirates.
It meant the Gunners finished the weekend with a five-point lead over second-placed Manchester City, who had defeated Newcastle 2-1 24 hours earlier.
While Eze will no doubt be delighted with his contribution, there continues to be debate and discussion surrounding the England’s international’s role in what has been a mixed debut season under Mikel Arteta.
Eze is yet to establish himself as a guaranteed starter at Arsenal, with Martin Odegaard’s fitness problems opening the door to his selection against Tottenham following a substitute appearance at Wolves.
And given the Gunners parted with such a large fee to Eze away from Selhurst Park last summer, questions have been asked amongst the fanbase regarding his somewhat underwhelming return across the campaign.
But after Eze’s brace at Spurs, Arteta had nothing but praise for the way the former Palace man had fared in ‘adapting’ to a new style of play.
‘He had that belief and I’m really happy with him,’ the Arsenal head coach said.
‘He’s really trying to mold and adapt into what we want from him.’
Analysing Arsenal’s win on his Rio Ferdinand Presents YouTube channel, Ferdinand said he was pleased that Eze was able to silence those that had been doubting him in the build-up to the derby.
But the legendary the ex-Manchester United and England defender believes Eze is still only a shadow of the player that helped Palace win the FA Cup last season.
‘I thought, up until the goal, he was quiet. He just had two moments in the game,’ Ferdinand said of Eze’s performance.
‘I think after the goal, he improved, but I was talking to my mates in the WhatsApp group about him and we were saying, “Why are we not seeing the best of Eze?”‘
Ferdinand added: ‘I just think his actual starting position is too high. I know he’s doing that to pin back the Spurs backline… I get that and why he’s doing it, but it’s actually going against him and being able to perform.
‘Eze needs to face the game. He needs to see the game, face it and start probing.
‘[He needs to] play one-twos, draw opponents out of their positions, “Come and press me”, and then play beyond them and run, a bit like he did for the second goal when Bukayo Saka fluffed his lines a bit and it fell to him and he finished it.’
Ferdinand likened Eze’s situation to that encountered by Jack Grealish after the midfielder left boyhood team Aston Villa to join Manchester City in a British-record £100million move back in 2021.
According to the six-time Premier League winner, it is often the case in title-chasing teams that X-factor players such as Eze and Grealish are forced to ‘sacrifice parts of their game’.
‘I think he’s a wonderful player and he’s a player that I’d pay to watch right now, 100 per cent with Eze,’ Ferdinand continued.
‘But I think he’s playing more for the team than for himself and if you’re going to win championships, sometimes you have to sacrifice parts of your game to do that.
‘Jack Grealish, everyone can say what the want about Jack Grealish. He sacrificed parts of his game for the benefit of the [Manchester City] team. He didn’t look as good as he did at Aston Villa.
‘I don’t know if we’re seeing it to the same extent but we’re still probably yet to see the Crystal Palace Eze in an Arsenal shirt.’
Eze will be desperate to continue his run in the side and pick up where he left off when Arsenal return to Premier League action at home to Chelsea this weekend.
Odegaard’s possible return to full fitness – following a cameo appearance at Spurs – could give Arteta a selection headache heading into Sunday’s clash between first and fourth at the Emirates.