Former Sunderland midfielder Don Hutchison believes Newcastle United ace Hatem Ben Arfa is overweight.

Hutchison wrote in The Journal: "Now when I see Ben Arfa, I see a top-class player but I also see someone who is just not fit at the moment. I look at him and think: 'If you had been playing every week, training as intensely as the others and flying in games you'd be four or five pounds lighter than you are now'.

"When it comes to body shape and physique, it is a mistake to think all players are the same and I would put Ben Arfa in the same category as Wayne Rooney. When he's not playing or coming back from an injury he can look like a Sunday league player while he's getting himself back into shape."