Mikel Arteta has brushed aside any talk that he could eventually walk away from Arsenal in the manner of Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola, insisting his enthusiasm for the role remains as strong as ever after putting pen to paper on a new long-term contract.
Both Klopp and Guardiola left their respective clubs, Liverpool and Manchester City, after extended periods in charge, each citing exhaustion and the need for a step away from the pressures of elite management. Arteta, however, made clear he does not see himself following a similar path anytime soon.
"To stop doing what I do? At the moment it's not in my head, because I love so much what I do, I wake up every morning and I have this energy," Arteta said. He acknowledged that people around him often urge him to slow down, but insisted that stepping back from work only reignites his enthusiasm rather than draining it.
"A lot of people say, 'Mikel but you need to rest sometimes'. But the reality, and I'm honest, is sometimes I take a break during the day, I go back and I start to work on something and I get more energy because I love what I do," he explained, adding that ideas and plans for the team continue to excite him even during moments meant for rest.
The Spaniard went further, describing his role not as a burden but as a privilege, rejecting the notion that leading a club of Arsenal's stature should be framed primarily in terms of pressure or stress. "This is the beauty of working, of doing something that is your absolute passion and that's why I feel extremely lucky to be where I am," he said.
Arteta, who took charge of Arsenal in December 2019, pointed to his relative inexperience in management as part of why he approaches the job with such energy. "I think I'm still really young and this is just my first experience as well," he said. "That is probably the way I live my profession and this week we had a lot of discussions and people talked about pressure or stress. I understand [but] I don't relate my job to that and I've been through very different moments. It's more about the level of the passion and love that I have for the game and what I do with the ambition and drive and aspirations that I have. And if you want to put a name into it, fine, but for me it's just a privilege to do that every single day."
With his new contract now signed, Arteta has cemented his status as the longest-serving manager currently working across the top four divisions of English football. Should he complete the full four years of his new deal, he would reach eleven years in charge at the Emirates Stadium — exactly half the length of Arsene Wenger's historic 22-year tenure at the club.
When asked whether he could envisage matching Wenger's longevity, Arteta laughed off the comparison, choosing instead to credit the club's ownership and senior staff for their role in convincing him to extend his stay. "I always say that when you are negotiating and when you are trying to figure out the future, the most important thing is at the end, when you are about to sign the deal, looking at everyone in the room and seeing some smiley faces and excitement in their eyes," he said. "And that's what I gather from Stan and Josh [Kroenke], especially, and then from Rich [Garlick], from James [King], from Andrea [Berta], of course, that was there, and then obviously the staff of the players."
He added that despite the security of a new long-term deal, he does not take his position for granted. "That's it. I have to earn the right every single day to continue to be at this level, sitting in this chair, and making the most out of it," Arteta said.
Based on reporting from Standard Football.