Rio Ferdinand analysis of the top-four battle is much ado about nothing

Apparently Rio Ferdinand believes that Arsenal is among the teams that can claim a top-four spot.

The media have really run with this one, for example, the Metro somehow turned the former England defenders comments into Arsenal being in with a shout of grabbing a top-four spot.

You see, Ferdinand was asked about what he thought of the top four race and he admitted that the race was still very much open because none of the teams involved has gone on a strong run of form as Liverpool has done.

Ferdinand actually said: “It is up for grabs.

“There’s probably four or five teams who can get into that top four.

“And again time will tell – no one has hit a great run of form in the chasing pack to really say ‘we’re going to get that fourth place’.”

Arsenal currently have 31 points with 13 games left to play, they have ten points less than Chelsea who occupies the last Champions League place and there are five teams between the Blues and Arsenal.

It would need Arsenal to more or less win every single game until the end of the season and every team from fourth to ninth to collapse. It simply is not going to happen.

To be fair to Ferdinand he did not even mention Arsenal, he was mumbling on about Man Utd having a shot at the top-four but it is frustration that the media take something that has almost nothing to do with reality and somehow include Arsenal in their warped thinking.

For the most part, the vast majority of Arsenal fans have accepted that we will not be finishing top four this season and just because a pundit says the final top-four spot is up for grabs does not change the reality with respect to Arsenal.