Because he was of a different mould from his Arsenal predecessors who played in the same position, this led to criticisms of his lightweight frame and less aggressive style of play, due to his development in the Barcelona Youth Academy, with former teammate Ashley Cole criticising the Spaniard as "an unproven featherweight" in his autobiography.
Karena dia dari era yang berbeda dari pendahulunya di Arsenal yang bermain di posisi yang sama, ini menyebabkan kritik ringan muncul dan dengan gaya bermain yang kurang agresif, karena perkembangannya di Barcelona Youth Academy, dengan mantan rekan setimnya Ashley Cole mengkritik pemain Spanyol ini sebagai " bulu belum terbukti " dalam otobiografinya.