What would it take for Mikel Arteta to walk in the summer?

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Just Arsenal News

·1 marzo 2025

What would it take for Mikel Arteta to walk in the summer?

I have written for JustArsenal throughout Arteta’s reign as manager. In fact, I had been submitting articles when he was captain of our club.

I would say that the last couple of weeks is the first time a sizable portion of our readers have questioned whether he should keep his job. Some have lost faith in the Spaniard, while others are letting doubts creep in.

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Let me clarify—it’s very unlikely our boss will lose his job this summer. It would take a dramatic collapse, like missing out on the top four, for him to be sacked. Even then, it might require evidence that he’s lost the dressing room.

The 42-year-old was given a new contract as recently as September. Not only was his deal extended, but he was also made the third highest-paid coach in the world.

Where I work, if my employer is unhappy with my performance, they don’t give me a massive pay rise. If you’re authorising someone to be paid £9 million a year, that means you’re content with finishing second two years running.

You’re not changing your mind five months later because the team is still in second place. That’s not how successful business people operate.

His original extension was after two eighth-place finishes, without the Kroenke family knowing where he would finish in his third season. That our owners didn’t want to wait to see if we would qualify for the Champions League (we didn’t) was a clear show of faith.

The latest deal is reported to have included a pay increase of approximately £4 million a season. That’s the opposite of an employee being under any pressure. Delighted to once again be getting maximum revenue from UEFA, Arteta has been rewarded.

This was probably out of fear that, with his reputation growing, they didn’t want the ex-midfielder to be seduced by Man City or Barcelona. His connection with those giants is obvious.

Volunteering to make Arteta second only to Pep Guardiola in terms of wealth, with only one FA Cup on his CV, confirms what we always knew—progress at Arsenal is not purely based on trophies.

Since joining our board in 2006, as long as we dine at UEFA’s head table, your position is secure.

I maintain that, over in the US, Stan Kroenke translates every metric as a job well done in North London.

Not only is there zero thought about the need for change, but he will also be toasting the money being made at the Emirates.

Alternative voices can’t be heard over in America. Even if they could, you don’t become a billionaire without having thick skin.

They can tolerate any Gooners crying on social media. Not that they are digesting much Arsenal content anyway.

The only way someone different is in our dugout in August is if Arteta chooses that to be the case.

Which might not be as clear-cut as we think.

(Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

After his third full campaign, when reviewing why his team failed to hang on in the title race, Arteta admitted doubting himself. Famously spending more days top of the table than any side that did not end up champions, he took the collapse hard.

Failure to make his squad mentally strong enough had made him sensitive to his own skill set.

Unable to protect youngsters from being crippled by a fear of failure broke his heart.

He got so close to putting smiles on everyone’s faces that he now looked in the mirror and didn’t know if the reflection he saw was a man able to get over the line.

Essentially undertaking his apprenticeship at the Etihad, the assistant manager was being mentored by Pep Guardiola, one of the most intense men to ever coach.

Pep’s attention to detail is almost obsessive. The reason he had to walk away from the Nou Camp was that, emotionally, he had given everything he had. If he didn’t rest, he would become ill.

If that’s your teacher (and friend), many of these qualities will have been adopted.

Yet, as Pep has shown himself recently, it’s exhausting when you’re winning—but silverware is the best medicine. Without the medals, your brain suddenly feels very tired.

Pep, though, is comforted by 15 league and cup titles since moving to England.

His protégé is fighting to return the Gunners to the highest level. Every year he fails, mentally, the next one becomes harder.

Especially with the feeling that opportunities have been allowed to pass by.

If Arteta then gets the impression that a portion of the fanbase is running out of patience, he might put himself first.

A big part of that is what really happened last month.

He said we were short in attack and needed help. Was he not listened to?

Did he turn down options?

How much involvement does he have in the transfer strategy?

Does he miss Edu?

He can’t publicly do anything but put on a brave face when talking to the press. It would be counterproductive to throw those who pay his salary under the bus.

Yet he was struggling on Wednesday to keep his composure after dropping more points due to our limitations up front.

When asked after full-time what he thought the issue was, he responded, ‘I don’t want to talk about that… again… we know.’

I believe Arteta loves the club and has the ambition to end our Premier League drought.

Yet if he feels he was let down in the last window, he has the personality not to let anyone’s incompetence impact his career.

Arteta is cerebral. We have seen that by how he treats talent once they don’t fit his ethos.

If he senses the Kroenke family didn’t match his principles, he will eventually put his own needs first.

He watched Mr Wenger be a shield, his love for the badge exploited.

If judged only on accolades, the Frenchman could have jumped to PSG or Bayern Munich the moment his best players were sold to pay off stadium debt.

Out of loyalty, he stayed. Loyalty that not all gave back.

Arteta was skipper at the time and will be aware that not all supporters were thankful—hence why Mr Wenger regrets not leaving sooner.

Arteta is too young to be manipulated.

In this sport, perception changes very quickly. A year ago, many saw him as being on a shortlist one day for a return to Manchester or Spain.

That makes the next transfer window a crossroads for Arteta.

He will be aware his popularity with fans has decreased in the last few months but won’t tolerate gambling his reputation if he feels he’s not to blame.

Only he knows what the criteria were.

It would seem harsh if he’s met the targets set for him yet is losing credibility.

You won’t find many sporting franchises where those in power increase your pay in September, but by February, your popularity with fans is at its lowest since you started the profession. There’s a disconnect.

You sense that, from now till May, who is accountable for neglecting our squad will continue to be divisive and the source of many debates.

One option for Arteta, if he does feel let down by the Kroenke family, is to resign—knowing that he’s only sabotaging his own future by working with his hands tied behind his back.

That would support him in future interviews, where he could rationalise why he couldn’t add to his FA Cup.

He wouldn’t be the first or last in the sport to walk away due to not having the same vision as the custodians of a club.

£9 million, though, is a massive sum to turn your back on.

It was he himself, though, in his first press conference as manager, who said he had values to uphold that he would not accept anyone not adhering to.

Does he have to reassess his own moral compass?

Do you stand still and let your own personal targets melt away just for the sake of your bank balance?

If Stan Kroenke is content for the Gunners not to progress, there’s little Arteta can do to stop that. He’s just an employee; the club doesn’t belong to him.

That doesn’t mean he has to freeze with them. It doesn’t have to slow his momentum down or stop him from moving forward.

Don’t be shocked if he’s thinking the same.

Dan Smith

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