He may have made a name for himself as a player, but now Mikel Arteta is proving to be a natural in the managerial hot-seat too.
His appointment as Arsenal head coach back in 2019 was met with some concern due to his lack of experience, having only worked for three years as Pep Guardiola’s assistant at Manchester City.
However, despite the question marks surrounding him, Arteta and management go together very well.
Just a few months after taking charge, Arteta brought two trophies back to the Emirates – the FA Cup and Community Shield.
Due to their success in the FA Cup, Arsenal secured a place in the Europa League despite finishing eighth in the league, and they have looked in better shape overall since the Spaniard took the reins.
The Arsenal hierarchy were so pleased with the results, they ended up changing Arteta’s job title from ‘Head Coach’ to ‘First Team Manager’.
It’s no secret that the Gunners have struggled this season, but there were always going to be obstacles along the way whilst Arteta brought a new dawn to the football club.
The style of football is improving, the attitude is better, and the players are more together than ever before.
Arteta’s work at Arsenal has reportedly caught the eye of several top European clubs, but the 38-year-old isn’t ready to go anywhere just yet.
Speaking in an interview on Monday, Arteta was asked about managing his former club Paris Saint-Germain in the future.
“I love Paris, I love Paris,” Arteta told (beIN SPORTS). I have very good memories from over there.
“It was my first club as a professional. The club is always in my heart. You never know, but I have a lot of work to do (here at Arsenal).”
“PSG have an incredible team – the manager Mauricio Pochettino is a coach that I am close to because I played with him at PSG.
“He is a very, very strong manager, and I hope that he will win a lot of titles with PSG.”
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Arteta has a big future ahead of him, and the initial signs have shown that he will be a successful manager in the years to come.
Several highly regarded and respected managers have praised Arteta’s work at Arsenal, including Pep Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp and Brendan Rodgers.
Arteta has a huge job on his hands at the Emirates and, as he said himself, there’s still a lot of work to be done there – which includes getting the club back into the Champions League.
It is very much a process that will inevitably take time and patience, and despite this season being a poor one for Arsenal, the positives appear to outweigh the negatives.
The board are happy with what they see on and off the pitch, and although they aren’t currently where they want to be, the general feeling is that things are moving in the right direction – slowly but surely.
Arteta’s job is safe for now, and he is enjoying the challenges which come with being in charge of one of football’s biggest clubs whilst continuing to learn and improve every day. It’s safe to say he won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
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