SUMMARY
- Arteta, an assistant to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, fit well into the club and began his quest to reform Arsenal in December 2019.
- The club showed trust in its young manager and it duly paid off as Arteta led Arsenal to UCL soccer for the first since the 2016/17 season.
Mikel Arteta has been a breath of fresh air for the Arsenal fanbase. The fanbase had to bear the pain of trophyless seasons and a spineless team with no character. The later years of club and icon Arsene Wenger weren’t particularly pleasing and the subsequent manager Unai Emery too crumbled under the pressure. However, Arteta, an assistant to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, fit well into the club and began his quest to reform Arsenal in December 2019.
🚨 @Teamnewsandtix has already been told the Arteta story from @SPORT is not true. ❌ https://t.co/V1Q45K98TA
— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) January 28, 2024
Arteta won the FA Cup in his very first season and the signs were looking very good for the Spaniard. However, the 41-year-old struggled to manage in the Premier League for the next two seasons, as ‘The Gunners’ failed to achieve their long-standing dream of achieving Champions League qualification.
The club showed trust in its young manager and it duly paid off as Arteta led Arsenal to UCL soccer for the first since the 2016/17 season. ‘The Gunners’ also narrowly missed out on the Premier League 22/23 title by 5 points.
Mikel Arteta has no plans to leave Arsenal at the end of the 23/24 season
His success with the Arsenal team has alerted the clubs in Europe. Every club would love to have the Spaniard as their head coach, given Arteta’s exciting brand of soccer and the energy that he brings to the dressing room. This could well be a possibility at the end of the 23/24 season. Mikel Arteta has reportedly, told the Arsenal board that he wishes to leave Arsenal.
🚨 Mikel Arteta wants FOUR other positions he feels he needs to complete his squad. They are centre-forward, another midfielder & two full-backs. [@MiguelDelaney] #afc pic.twitter.com/BPM2nKGQ3i
— afcstuff (@afcstuff) December 20, 2023
However, the reports have been termed fake by the reputed English media house Sky Sports. The news outlet confirmed that Arteta has never expressed any desire to leave Arsenal at any point and is solely focused on ‘The Gunners.’. Some Spanish media houses linked Mikel Arteta with the FC Barcelona job. The Catalan club will have a new manager from the 24/25 season, as Xavi will vacate his position as the Barca manager.
Media outlets link Arteta with the FC Barcelona managerial post after Xavi’s announcement
Xavi looked disheartened after his team’s 5-3 defeat to Villareal in La Liga on January 27, 2024. Shouts of ‘Xavi out’ had begun even before the game, and the fans’ dissatisfaction reached the zenith after the embarrassing loss to Villareal. However, Xavi himself felt remorseful and announced that he was leaving FC Barcelona on June 30th. The Spaniard is reportedly mentally very exhausted and wants Barca to have a change in direction as he has nothing left to offer.
Xavi leaves the club after steering the club through one of its darkest phases. The Spaniard won the club a La Liga title and a Spanish Supercup trophy in his first full season at the club in 22/23.
🚨 Xavi: “This club needs a change of dynamic. Leaving Barça is the best decision possible for all parties involved”.
“I’m the most responsible one, so the players will finally feel free now”. pic.twitter.com/2sPpFv2wyj
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 27, 2024
Spanish media outlets have already started working on finding Xavi’s replacements. Famous Spanish Sports daily, Diario AS, has reported that Joan Laporta, the President of FC Barcelona regards Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta very highly and wants to replace Xavi with him.
Arteta’s brand of possession-based soccer is also a perfect match for the Catalan club and the Spaniard’s great relationship with the Arsenal board can allow him to take up a new job in the 24/25 season. However, these all are speculations as of now, and Mikel Arteta and FC Barcelona are yet to decide on their respective futures.