Mikel Arteta speaks with Emile Smith Rowe
Mikel Arteta and Emile Smith Rowe
Emile Smith Rowe has paid tribute to Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta, crediting the Spaniard with improving him "a lot as a player".
Smith Rowe played more than 100 games under Arteta, but left Arsenal for Fulham this summer after injuries and competition for places meant he started just three Premier League games over the past two seasons.
And Smith Rowe, a boyhood Arsenal fan who joined the club's academy at the age of ten, still looks back fondly on his time working with Arteta. When asked to describe Arteta in one word, Smith Rowe told Sky Sports: "Detail".
The 24-year-old then explained his choice, adding: "I think this is just a word to just explain how he works, you know, like just the attention to detail, just in terms of the tactics and stuff.
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"Details just to everything, you know, the pressing or the playing out from the back and where you have to be in the right moment as an attacking player. And obviously he improved me a lot as a player as well so yeah, I can't thank him enough."
Smith Rowe recently faced Arsenal for the first time since leaving the club, helping Fulham earn a 1-1 draw at Craven Cottage earlier this month. Ahead of that match, Arteta spoke glowingly about Smith Rowe and admitted it was a "very tough decision" to let him join Fulham.
"It was a special one for sure," Arteta said. "But as well when you look at someone in their eyes, and he really believes it is the move for him, the right time to move and that he really needs another challenge, you have to understand that, show your gratitude and move on.
Fulham star Emile Smith Rowe
Smith Rowe left Arsenal for Fulham over the summer
"Once they leave you have to leave them to do their own thing. You speak to them once in a while, but very grateful for what they did for us and wish them the best. It was a very tough decision, obviously, to let Emile go, especially because personally, I feel really grateful for what he did for the club and for me.
"In that period of time, I think he was instrumental in changing some things around it but in the end, players have to play. He had a lot of difficult moments as well. A lot of struggles with injuries when we were together and he needed that fresh start. It's normal. We understood that and we let him go."
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