Arsenal
Aston Villa
Chelsea
Crystal Palace
Everton
Fulham
Leeds United
Liverpool
Manchester City
Manchester United
Newcastle United
Nottingham Forest
Southampton
Tottenham Hotspur
West Ham United
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Rio Ferdinand that there is no one doing more for Arsenal right now than Emile Smith Rowe, and named two former Gunners stars that the academy graduate reminds him of.
Smith Rowe has four goals in the Premier League this season. The latest came on Sunday as Mikel Arteta’s men beat Watford at the Emirates.
It was another clever finish from the 21-year-old. He has now broken the deadlock twice in the top-flight this term. Meanwhile, he also scored important goals against both Aston Villa and Leicester.
Since scoring against the Hornets, Smith Rowe has been promoted to the senior England squad for this international break.
And ahead of what could potentially be the attacking midfielder’s international debut, Ferdinand suggested that the starlet reminds him of former Gunners star Alexander Hleb, as well as one of the Invincibles.
“There is no one doing more right now than Emile Smith Rowe,” .
“He reminds me, but with more end product it seems right now, I think he’ll go on to levels, his style is a little bit Hleb.
“The way he just moves and manipulates the ball, runs a bit, can keep people off balance all game. Robert Pires vibe, a little bit.”
Smith Rowe has already outshone Hleb in one key area for Arsenal
The Hleb comparison seems a valid one. If you watch any of the Belarusian’s 10 goals for Arsenal, you will likely see a defender or goalkeeper left on their backside due to Hleb’s trickery.
Smith Rowe has that same ability to leave defenders feeling dizzy. As Ferdinand suggests, he leaves opponents off balance the entire time that they are tasked with dealing with him.
But crucially, Smith Rowe has already outperformed Hleb in one key area. He has 12 goals in all competitions for the Gunners.
And he has done in less than half the games it took Hleb to score 10.
Obviously, there is a lot more for Smith Rowe to achieve. But surpassing that tally after less than a year as a first-team regular is unquestionably quite some achievement.