Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez has lavished praise on Mikel Arteta - who has already been touted as a future manager of the Catalan giants.
Arteta, 40, has earned plenty of plaudits at Arsenal this season after inspiring an unlikely title charge. The Gunners were not expected to challenge for the domestic crown after missing out on the Champions League last term but are currently two points clear at the summit of the Premier League with a game in hand on reigning champions Manchester City.
Unsurprisingly, Arsenal's impressive ascent means Arteta's stock has risen significantly. And Barcelona, Arteta's former club, are believed to have already identified the Spaniard as a future boss.
The Spanish giants are currently managed by Xavi: a Camp Nou legend. The 43-year-old has done a fine job since succeeding Ronald Koeman back in November 2021 and has the club challenging at the top of LaLiga after a tumultuous 2021/22 campaign.
That hasn't prevented speculation linking Arteta with the Nou Camp hot seat in the future - but Xavi still lauded the Arsenal chief ahead of Barca's Europa League tie with Manchester United this week.
When he was asked by The Times if he was surprised by the level of success Arteta has had this season, Xavi replied: "No, he's not surprised me because he had the best references [having worked alongside Guardiola at City] and because if you have played as a central midfielder at Barca you already have a headstart — you have the map of your pitch in your head. And because Pepe Reina [the former Spain goalkeeper] is a close friend of his and has always spoken very well of him. I had a feeling that Arteta would do very well, but it was just a feeling."
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Although Arsenal would be loathed to lose Arteta right now given their current league standing, the Gunners chief spoke candidly about the prospect of leaving the club back in November - and admitted that he knew it was 'inevitable' that he would be sacked one day after agreeing to return to Arsenal as their first-team manager.
Speaking on Michael Calvin's Football People podcast, Arteta said: "As a manager, probably it's the (biggest) fear of getting sacked. I made a very conscious decision the day I made the decision to become a coach - I said: 'It will happen. Today, tomorrow, in a month's time, in 10 years' time. I don't know when it will happen.'
"That cannot drive my emotion and this cannot be the reason why I do certain things or not. For me now the fear is to let people down."
