Three years ago this week Mikel Arteta replaced Unai Emery as Arsenal head coach, ending a successful period as Pep Guardiola's assistant at Manchester City. Upon his arrival, many questioned the 40-year-old's qualities as a Premier League manager but the Spaniard is beginning to prove his worth.
Arteta has led the Gunners to the top of the Premier League table this campaign, five points above Guardiola’s side. Arsenal look set to go head-to-head with the Citizens for the title in the second half of the season, starting after Christmas against West Ham on Boxing Day.
This season, Guardiola has heaped praise on the work his former colleague has accomplished since taking over in north London, insisting that his former assistant had changed the club. The pair formed a close bond with each other during their time in Manchester and Arteta has revealed the timeline of their relationship before working together, dating back to Guardiola’s days at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
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Opening up on his relationship in an interview with Sky Sports' Jamie Carragher, Arteta said: "We met when I was 15-years-old. He was my idol, he was the one to emulate if I wanted to be a first-team player at Barcelona, and we built that relationship from there.
"And then it was weird because when I was still playing and he was the Barcelona manager and Bayern Munich manager he would call me to ask about English teams and how would you play against that, and we built that relationship.
"And one day it was very clear to me, (Guardiola said) "the day that I'm in England, I have a dream to do what I did in Barcelona in this league when everybody said it is impossible to do, and I would like your help and support and experience to help me to achieve that dream". That was it."
During his time at Man City, Arteta lifted two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two EFL Cups. He has since added another FA Cup to his collection in 2020 and could defy the odds with a first Premier League title win in 18 years.
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