Rio Ferdinand: Petr Cech the best signing of the summer

Cech was in top form as Arsenal beat Chelsea to win the Community Shield on Sunday, and Ferdinand pointed to Arsene Wenger's new additions - and in particular the new Gunners goalkeeper - as the reason for that.

"Arsenal have made the best signings, I would say that even if they had just signed Petr Cech," said Ferdinand on BT Sport.

"He is the best signing in the league, he is that important. There is a huge responsibility in that position as a goalkeeper. With him in goal they have got a better chance.

"I think Chelsea are the team to beat, they have for a great squad. That's why they haven't made huge strides in the transfer market because they don't need to. They have got the best players and the most drilled squad.

"They know what their manager wants and they have got Hazard who is that stardust that every team needs. He can turn a game when he is not playing particularly well."

Good to see that in his new role as a pundit, Rio Ferdinand has already figured out how the job is done: make an over-hasty knee-jerk assessment based on 90 minutes of football, then simply cover over the fact that it is ludicrously overblown by making sure you deliver your verdict in clear, powerful language. Admit no possibility that you are wrong, and leave the audience in awe of your wisdom - all the while knowing that if you're ever called upon to change your mind, almost nobody will remember what you said in the first place anyway.

None of that is to say that Cech isn't a good signing - he is. But to describe a player as the signing of the summer a week before the season even kicks off is like describing a racehorse as the best in the business 10 minutes before the Grand National starts. It's entertaining, but utterly pointless and hugely likely to be proven wrong. Which brings us back to what we said a few sentences ago: Rio is already nailing the punditry business.