Rio Ferdinand calls out Arsenal star for ‘wild decisions’ after West Ham collapse

Rio Ferdinand was not impressed by one Arsenal player during the weekend’s collapse against West Ham United.

It was another frustrating weekend for the Gunners, who led 2-0 against West Ham, all set to protect their advantage at the top of the Premier League, but Mikel Arteta’s men went on to concede twice, settling for a point at the London Stadium. The result means Arsenal’s lead is cut to four points, with Manchester City having a game in-hand, while the top two sides also have to play each other before the end of the season.

Instead of Arsenal solely having their fate in their own hands, City too have the Premier League title in their hands, and it’s not set up to be a thrilling title race, something the Gunners will have wanted to avoid.

But the stalemate against West Ham could have been avoided, according to Ferdinand, who was not impressed with Gunners defender Gabriel Magalhaes.

“I thought they [Arsenal] let themselves down,” Ferdinand said on his Vibe With Five YouTube channel.

“They had the game in a stranglehold, they had West Ham where they wanted them, going into half time 2-0 up, you coast that game. But rash… and I’ve said this about Gabriel a few times. He’s rash, he makes mad, wild decisions.

“As a defender you’ve got to be calm. There’s no need for him to do what he did. It was a rush of blood, he needs to eradicate that, get that out of his game quick. As a manager you don’t want to see that. Because those types of things ruin the head too many times, it starts becoming part of their make-up, and you’re going, ‘hold on, can I rely on this guy?’.

“I think he’s had a fabulous season, Gabriel. But those types of decisions can be very costly, he’s in the run-in now. That will hurt, the way they dropped points.”