Rio Ferdinand has revealed that he disagrees with what Sir Jim Ratcliffe recently said about Mikel Arteta at Arsenal.
The Gunners sit at the top of the Premier League table after seven matches, having won five, drawn one and lost one, conceding just twice in the process.
Ally McCoist now believes Arsenal are favourites to win the title, and the Scotsman is one of several pundits to have swiftly altered their predictions on the outcome of this race for silverware in the last two weeks.
This will certainly add another element of pressure on Arteta, who is expected to finally deliver a major trophy to the Emirates this season.
What Jim Ratcliffe said about Mikel Arteta and Arsenal
It took Arteta several years to elevate Arsenal from mid-table mediocrity to perennial title challengers.
The Spaniard inherited a mess, and it took significant investment and patience in the process to turn things around over a protracted period.
Naturally, the tactician’s work in North London is now being used as a blueprint by many teams.
Those who start poorly in their jobs in the dugout now regularly reference the time Arteta was granted to implement his ideas in N5, and Manchester United’s minority owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe, believes there are similarities to be drawn between Ruben Amorim and the Basque coach.
Speaking on the Business Podcast, Ratcliffe cited Arteta as a reason to give Amorim more time to succeed at Old Trafford.
“Ruben needs to demonstrate he is a great coach over three years,” the billionaire said.
“Football is not overnight. It’s three years. You also look at Arteta. He had a miserable time over the first couple of years.”
Rio Ferdinand responds to Jim Ratcliffe’s comparison between Mikel Arteta and Ruben Amorim
Rio Ferdinand wasn’t having what Ratcliffe said about Amorim and Arteta.
The former Manchester United defender has claimed that there are a few key differences between the Portuguese’s start in the north-west and Arteta’s in Islington.
“Now, do I agree with exactly what he said?” pondered Ferdinand on Rio Ferdinand Presents.
“I understand the sentiment, but I don’t, I mean, if you go through the facts and we’ve had Mr. Fact Checker himself on, I don’t think he’s the right person to kind of draw a comparison with.
“I think you look at Arteta, the difference with Arteta, there are similarities in some of the stats, but in the big one, is he improved the team from 10th to finish 8th in his first year, whereas Amorim took his team from 14th to finish 15th.
“There was also flexibility in the way that Arteta had his team. I think he had about seven different formations in his first 50 matches, just trying things out and looking at stuff. And I just think you were seeing probably a bit of a more, the improvement line would have been a bit more consistent and you go, I can see it happening.”
Ultimately, backing Arteta to prove himself at Arsenal was justifiable because the Gunners’ hierarchy fundamentally believed that they had one of the most talented coaches in the world at their disposal.
It turns out that they did, and if United believe the same, then they should support their manager. That said, there is little to suggest at this stage that Amorim will prove to be an elite coach, and thus, it’s probably not worth sticking with him and investing in his system and players.
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