by During the managerial whirlwind of this summer, it seemed like every big club was looking for the same thing: a young, exciting coach to take them to the next level.
In Mikel Arteta, Arsenal have exactly that and that’s why Thursday’s news that the club have tied him down to a new contract is a huge boost.
Since his appointment in 2019, Arteta has transformed the Gunners and made them serial title contenders.
In the last two seasons they have finished second to Manchester City in the Premier League and each time the gap to Pep Guardiola’s side has narrowed.
Guardiola is confident the Gunners will continue to struggle against City with Arteta in charge, stressing ahead of last season’s final game that there are three certainties in his life: waking up, going to sleep and Arsenal being title contenders.
“With the age they have, with the coach they have, with the way they’ve been playing for the last two seasons, they’ll be here for a very, very long time,” he said.
Arsenal know the next step is to become champions – and with Arteta at the helm, they believe they will achieve that.
The Spaniard certainly has the tools to achieve this, as in recent years the club has assembled a young squad that is now reaching its peak.
The same can be said of Arteta, who is still just 42 and it is easy to forget that this is his first managerial job.
The Spaniard has had to overcome many obstacles in his early days with Arsenal to get to this point, including the Covid-19 pandemic, fan revolt against a proposed Super League and mass layoffs within the club.
In one of his first team meetings, Arteta scattered chairs around a room and told the squad it symbolised the mess they found themselves in.
The biggest challenge, however, has been changing the club’s culture, which was broken when Arteta arrived. Indeed, in one of his first team meetings, the Spaniard scattered chairs around a room and told the team it symbolised the mess they were in.
Arteta has been at the heart of the rebuild, setting the tone for the entire club with his hard work ethic.
It’s rare that anyone beats him to the training ground in the morning, but if they do they might well find the Arsenal manager sitting quietly in his office.
This is often how he likes to start his day, with Arteta making the most of the silence before getting down to work as the players and staff arrive.
He craves control and nothing happens at the club without his knowledge. On his first day, Arteta was in the building for just five minutes before quizzing the analyst team about the cameras they had installed and whether drones could be used to film training.
There has been a lot of upheaval during Arteta’s tenure but Arsenal are now a well-run club with a harmonious dressing room and that is partly why he agreed to stay.
Having gone through so much to get the Gunners to this point, why would Arteta let someone else reap the rewards of his hard work?
There is also the fact that Arteta has a genuine affection and connection with the club. He cares deeply about their success, perhaps too much at times, and hates to lose, often blaming himself.
This is what drives him to go into detail and leave nothing out. Arteta even takes the time to watch his opposing manager’s press conferences, just in case he can get some useful information.
That level of dedication has seen Arteta get this far and now the next step for him is to add more silverware.
Arteta craves control and nothing happens at the club without his knowledge
One FA Cup is not enough recognition for the work Arteta has done and all the skills he has shown in rebuilding Arsenal, this next phase is what can elevate his status to one of the best managers in the world.
There are areas he needs to improve in, such as rotating his squad more during busy periods of the season.
Arsenal should have ambitions of winning the Champions League as well as the Premier League, but they cannot aim for both unless Arteta shares the minutes in a similar manner to his mentor Guardiola.
Everything we have seen from Arteta so far suggests he will learn to do that and those inside Arsenal are certainly confident they have the manager to end their 20-year wait to win the Premier League.
