Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has highlighted fitness as the key weakness in Mikel Arteta's work at Arsenal so far.
The new head coach at the Emirates Stadium secured his first win in charge of the Gunners in what was his fourth game since being appointed boss in December.
It was only his third in the dugout, and his second in front of the home crowds after having lost to Frank Lampard's Chelsea in his debut in north London after drawing with Bournemouth away on Boxing Day.
He had watched from the stands at Goodison Park for a 0-0 stalemate with Everton the day after agreeing terms to leave Manchester City to become the head coach of Arsenal.
On BT Sport, Ferdinand blamed Arteta's first defeat to Chelsea on his players not being able to physically keep up with his demands.
It was a problem he also saw in how the Gunners faded in their 2-0 win over Manchester United.
"They weren't fit enough," he said. "We saw against Chelsea.
"One of the main reasons why they lost against Chelsea last week is that they fell apart physically in the last minutes.
"They looked dead on their feet at the time. They've got to improve that."
However, Ferdinand was full of praise for Arteta's impact at Arsenal so far and saw plenty of reasons to believe his methods have already had a positive effect on more than just the performance levels of the team.
"The smiles you saw at full-time was of players who seemed like they were happy," said the retired centre-back.
"They are happy to go to training every day, they are happy to take in the information from the manager because they believe in what he's preaching, and that goes a long way.
"It's very early. It's one result but you find out about your players when things are not going well.
"He'll have a run now, he'll win a few games, and then there will be a down turn and that's where you work out your players."
