Former Arsenal star player nearing his first managerial job

Throughout the years, Arsenal have seen many incredible players. Some of those players have gone on to become excellent managers themselves, with the most obvious example being the current Arsenal boss, Mikel Arteta.

Among the Arsenal players throughout the years, there are many obvious examples of players who stick out to be excellent future managers - For example Per Mertesacker, who is involved in the youth setup currently.

However, the player who is most-widely tipped to become a new manager for a club in his home country may surprise some Arsenal fans. He isn't the most popular figure in North London, that's for sure...

Former Arsenal star player nearing his first managerial job

According to AD, Robin van Persie is close to securing his first head-coach role. It is believed that Heerenveen, who play football in the Eredivisie, would like to make Robin van Persie their head coach, at least in the short term capacity. Currently, Robin van Persie coaches in the Feyenoord youth academy but he would like to step up his managerial career to become a head coach.

Look, Arsenal fans will undoubtedly have their own opinions about Robin van Persie. It is understandable that he isn't the most respected figure in North London, given how he betrayed the club to sign for rivals Manchester United. However, his playing days are behind him, so it is humbling to see a hard-working figure make his stride into management the old-fashioned way.

READ MORE: Every Arsenal captain from the Premier League era ranked from worst to best

It'd be a hard-sell to convince any Arsenal fan about Robin van Persie ever managing Arsenal. That wouldn't be the right move for Arsenal OR Van Persie. After all, Mikel Arteta is doing a pretty incredible himself as far as the Spaniard is aware, he's at the helm for the long run.

I guess it does raise an interesting question, though - Which former Arsenal player do you think is most likely to follow Robin van Persie into a management role of their own? My money is on Granit Xhaka, when he retires of course.