Ahead of Arsenal’s meeting with Sunderland, Mikel Arteta spoke to the media about everything from Mikel Merino’s likely reception on Wearside and the potential role of AI in football, to Granit Xhaka’s coaching ambitions and David Raya’s growing influence between the posts.
Here’s what he had to say…
**On Merino, an ex-Newcastle player, being in line for some stick from the Sunderland fans…**
He’s a really experienced player. Obviously, he’s played at the highest level for this country and with his previous clubs, so I think he’s very used to that. And if anything, I think those players take it as a motivation.
**On whether he got stick in any particular game or from a club…**
I don’t know. Personal stick? To be fair, no. Probably the one that impacted me the most, I was really young at the time, was when I was playing at PSG and we played Marseille away. It was an atmosphere that really impacted me. It was my first time as well playing in such an atmosphere and rivalry. But it was great.
**On what he, as manager, would hope to gain from AI assistance…**
That it makes me think, and it questions certain things that we do.
**On whether it could be used to model injuries, games, or tactics…**
If it’s reliable and it can help us, for sure. If it can guide us, for sure. But always without losing the sensitivity and the feeling and following the gut. In the end, we’re dealing with human beings, and that’s an aspect that, so far, it’s not able to replace.
**On what he remembers of Xhaka’s first steps into coaching at Arsenal…**
I think Ethan \[Nwaneri\] was one of them. They had a great group because it was Cedric \[Soares\], Mo Elneny, there were a few there as well. I loved it because that means, I’m sure if he wants it, that one day he’s going to be a great coach. And many others have started their licences while they are here because they feel inspired, they love it. And it’s an opportunity as well to improve their lives after they retire.
**On what type of coach Xhaka will be…**
It will be up to him to decide. That’s not for me, but I think a very good one.
**On whether he’d like someone like Xhaka on his staff…**
Let him play first. He’s playing every minute of every game, so I think we still have a long career ahead of him.
**On Carlos Cuesta and Jack Wilshere starting to coach, “children of his work”…**
Children? I’m not that old! But it’s great. At the end, everybody has a pathway, everybody needs an opportunity. I got one, and the players and the people around you obviously need to have that. Everybody wants to develop and try things in life and when they feel that’s the right moment to do it, you have to let them fly and wish them the best.
**On a managerial legacy being defined by people following in their footsteps (as well as trophies)…**
Especially if they enjoy and they love what they do, yes. And if it’s for the right reason, 100% yes. And if we have helped them or contributed to improve their lives or to give them a different perspective or inspire something, I think that’s a good legacy to leave.
**On David Raya’s powers of concentration and what he puts that down to…**
Well, first of all, the way he is naturally, the way he trains every single day and the way he anticipates things. Because sometimes when a player doesn’t make to have a defensive action, it’s because before that they’ve done something with their position and are already in the situation that that action that is very spectacular is not needed. And that’s the best way to avoid it. And David is exceptional at that.
**On whether he’s sensed a change in Raya’s character since joining Arsenal…**
Yes, because at the end, personally, things change. I think his role obviously is much more settled but David has always been a really determined, confident person and I think he showed that from the very first minute when he joined the club.
**On how he, as a manager, dissects what is right and wrong from AI analysis…**
It’s like stats. So how do I interpret those stats and how reliable they are and especially for how long we are analysing things, because my database is so small. You can get very confused, very annoyed immediately — this data means nothing — because you have to analyse, first of all, what is the methodology to analyse data? And if you don’t understand that, you just have to look at the data and then you can have a big problem.
**On not being replaced by a robot in the near future…**
That’s not going to be up to me, unfortunately. But we never know. Let’s be on our toes!