Arsenal: Why Mikel Arteta risk is the right one

Arsenal are reportedly reconsidering Mikel Arteta as their head coach, potentially succeeding Unai Emery. It would be a huge risk, but here is why I think it would be the right risk.

The question of whether there will be an Unai Emery replacement as Arsenal head coach has changed. There is now an assumption that there will be, at some point. And the debate has adjusted accordingly. Now we ask, who will Unai Emery’s replacement be?

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There are plenty of names in the mix. Many of them were also mentioned as potential appointments when Emery was first hired in 2018. And, like then, there is one name at the top of my list: Manchester City assistant manager, Mikel Arteta.

Arteta has no senior management experience. He has never been a head coach. He has never managed a senior team. He has never won anything as a manager. He is an almighty risk, there is no doubt about that. But he might just be the right type of risk.

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Whenever interviewing for a job, potential employers will ask for references. They do this to dig below the surface-level detail to better understand the person they might hire. These references can provide a better insight into the individual’s genuine qualities and character. Many major recruitment decisions are made based on these references. Well, Arteta might have the best references in football.

These are just some of the things that have been said about his character and coaching over the years.

First, the players. Fabian Delph did not hold back when discussing Arteta’s coaching in 2018:

"“Mikel Arteta has been so pivotal for me. One of the reasons I have stayed at the club is because he saw the qualities in me and he knew I was available to do the role they wanted me to do.”"

Leroy Sane told authors Lu Martin and Pol Ballus in Cuaderno de Manchester, a book about Guardiola’s City reign, that Arteta, even more than Pep Guardiola, is the man that he has learned the most from:

"“People always ask me about training under Pep, but the things I’ve learnt from Mikel Arteta! We get on brilliantly, he’s a lovely guy and a great coach. And he’s always right. He’ll watch me at training and then afterwards he’ll tell me what he thinks. He doesn’t just suggest something and leave me to get on with it.”"

Similarly, Raheem Sterling credits much of his improvement to Arteta, while Riyad Mahrez, Bernardo Silva and the Man. City emergency left-backs, including Delph and Oleksandr Zinchenko, have all highlighted the importance of Arteta’s influence behind the scenes.

And there is no doubt in Guardiola’s mind that Arteta will be an elite manager. Speaking shortly after Arsenal selected Emery and not Arteta, Guardiola said:

"“He’s an incredible human being, with incredible values about what it means in the locker room to be together, and he is already an incredible manager and he’ll have incredible success in his future.”"

This week, upon the resurfacing of the reports linking Arteta with a north London switch, Guardiola again did not hold back on his praise for his chief assistant:

"“He was an incredible player. Normally the holding midfielders have a vision. It is an incredible lesson in your career to learn what happened – you don’t need to go to school. He is an incredible human being and has an incredible work ethic. I said after a few months, this guy will be a manger. He behaves like a manager. That’s why we are satisfied to have him here.”"

If anyone can recognise managerial quality in an individual, I would suspect it might well be Guardiola, the defining coach of the modern game.

So yes, if Arsenal were to turn to Arteta to replace Emery, it would be a huge risk. And for some, it is simply too risky, a decision that should not be taken as a result. I have some sympathy with that viewpoint. Even Arteta’s staunchest admirers must concede that he is no certainty. But if Arsenal are willing to take a risk, they will not find a better candidate to bet on than Arteta. He could revolutionise the football club, and that is precisely what everyone wants, right?