Manchester City beat Arsenal to a 1-0 win at the Etihad in the FA Cup. With both teams set to face each other twice in the weeks ahead, Mikel Arteta reveals Pep’s influence on him.
Arteta on Pep:
Mikel Arteta worked under Pep Guardiola as an assistant manager at Manchester City. This learning period served him greatly as he is now challenging for the title with Arsenal. With many critics claiming Arteta to have copied Pep’s style, he has made it clear that he has never tried to duplicate the tactics of his managerial guru and is eager to have his own blueprint for Arsenal.
“We grew up in the same position. I cannot control that. I have never tried to copy and paste anything. This club deserves much better than that, and it would not work that way. Every character and person dictates how the manager is, and how the team is. And we are very different. We are really different as people and we are very different as managers. That is why we understand each other so well and have the relationship that we have. That is probably for someone else to respond,” he told reporters.
Arteta did appreciate Pep for guiding him and credits him for his success. “I feel gratitude. First of all, because he inspired me as a player and he inspired me and gave me the opportunity as a coach. That’s it. For what people think of me, I accept it. I wouldn’t be sitting here and having that willingness and love for coaching if he hadn’t trusted in my love and given me the opportunity. I was looking at him and just wanted to achieve what he was doing. He was an inspiration since I was 18 years old,” he stated.
Manchester City and Pep will have to fight once again to win the title with Arsenal sitting 5 points clear of them with a game in hand.
