Arteta on the Champions League final defeat to Paris: I feel as if poison is running through my veins
"This club has a special aura"
Mikel Arteta marked a new long-term deal with Arsenal, which runs until 2030, by looking back on his seven years in the Emirates Stadium dugout.
Speaking to "The Athletic", the Spaniard opened up on his journey with the Gunners.
Arteta decided to tear everything down when he took the job in 2019. "I turned the office upside down and put everything on the floor: computers, laptops, cables... Then I gathered everyone and said: if you want me to help you enjoy your profession, you have two minutes to tidy up this place and at least get ready to work together."
"This is only the beginning," he added. "It is something we must practise daily. Whatever we want to achieve, we have to do it together. I cannot do it on my own. The problem we face is much deeper, but the opportunity is limitless."
The stakes could not have been higher. "This could have been the end of my coaching career, because if everything had continued as it was, I would no longer have had a job," he said.
"What I decided on the day I accepted this wonderful opportunity was that I would give my life, my soul, all my knowledge and my best abilities to achieve a dream: to connect the pillars of this club from top to bottom," the Spanish coach continued.
His revolution bore fruit with a first Premier League title in 22 years. "It was not just a trophy. It was a moment we will remember for the rest of our lives," he said.
Arsenal's defeat in the Champions League final
That night against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final still stings.
"I still carry the mark of that defeat, as Arsene says," he commented. "That poison still runs through my veins. It must stay there because it is through it that you learn, and perhaps it is a great motivation for me and for everyone."
"There is an element of refinement, of behaviour, of light, of spirit," he went on. "It is something hard to describe in words, but this club has a special aura. It has an energy that draws you in, captivates your heart, and leaves a mark. I feel there is a lot still to be done and that this is only the beginning."
What stood out most was the daily routine Arteta devises to surprise his players. "This creativity stems from the work we do, and especially from paying attention to what the players need. What are they looking for? We have been together for seven years, and I love them to feel that, when they enter the building, and ask themselves: right, what is today's programme?.. Arteta is staying here."
