Mikel Arteta has clashed with several Arsenal players during his tenure at the Emirates Stadium
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has made some difficult decisions during his reign(Image: Shaun Botterill, Getty Images)
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Mikel Arteta has taken several difficult decisions while pursuing silverware at Arsenal. Since succeeding Unai Emery at the Emirates Stadium in December 2019, he's shaped the Gunners into a team capable of regularly competing for trophies.
While the FA Cup stands as Arteta's only major honour during his tenure, the Spanish boss has overseen a cultural revolution at Arsenal. The 44-year-old is striving to deliver the club's first Premier League crown in over 20 years and the Gunners could take a significant stride forward with a positive result against rivals Manchester City this weekend.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Aubameyang famously lost his place in Arteta's plans in December 2021 after returning late from an authorised visit to see his unwell mother in France. Speaking to The Athletic, the ex-Arsenal striker admitted his misjudgement.
"My mistake," Aubameyang said, before being subsequently dropped by the Gunners boss. "I should have come back the night before, but I arrived in the morning. I didn't tell them that I would miss the flight because I was preoccupied with my mum's stuff.
"I went directly to a team meeting. Everything was normal. After that, he (Arteta) said: 'Come with me'. This is where he started shouting. He said I could not do this because I was the captain and it was not acceptable.
"He said I gave him a knife in his back; I don't know why he said that. I was really p***** off because it was not true and he knew why I flew. He knew the reason and what was happening, he knew I was struggling that year. I was expecting help from him, not killing me like this.
"When I'm late, it's my fault - no problem. I always said sorry. But in this case, I'll never say sorry. For taking my mum from Laval to London? No. Even if I came a day late, I would never say sorry. You understand or you don't. If not, don't give a day off or tell people they cannot fly."
This represented yet another flashpoint between Aubameyang and Arteta. The duo had already fallen out in March 2021 when the ex-Arsenal striker turned up late for a squad meeting before the north London derby. The forward moved to Barcelona in February 2022 after departing Arsenal by mutual agreement.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mikel Arteta with the FA Cup trophy
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang won the FA Cup under Arteta(Image: Catherine Ivill, Getty Images)
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Matteo Guendouzi
In June 2020, Mikel Arteta declined to confirm whether Guendouzi would stay at Arsenal following his involvement in triggering a mass bust-up at the Amex Stadium. The former Gunners midfielder got into an altercation with several Brighton players after Neal Maupay netted a late winner.
Guendouzi, who avoided any FA sanction despite his conduct, was left out of the squad for Arsenal's following match and played no further part in that campaign. When quizzed about the Frenchman's prospects, Arteta said: "Whatever internal issues we have, we will deal with them privately and I am never going to make any of that public.
"All the players that are here, I am counting on them. If they want to jump on the boat they are more than welcome and that's always my mindset. I am here to help all of them to improve individually and collectively. That is my job."
Guendouzi initially joined Hertha Berlin before returning to the Gunners. He then moved to Marseille on a season-long loan, which was subsequently made permanent.
Arsenal player Matteo Guendouzi faces Brighton
Matteo Guendouzi clashed with Brighton players in 2020(Image: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
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In an earlier interview with BeIN Sports, Guendouzi opened up about his falling out with Arteta. He said: "Journalists used this excuse to say that we had a bad relationship and that's why I stopped playing and left Arsenal.
"Not at all. It's a gesture like many on the pitch. There's a lot of tension sometimes, a lot of problems on the pitch. In any case, it has nothing to do with all that."
Casting his mind back to his time under Arteta, Guendouzi added: "It's true that I didn't have the best relationship with him. Beyond that, I always tried to work, always gave the maximum of myself in training and in matches. I still play a few matches with him, I still did great performances.
"He preferred other players and I respect that decision. That's why, afterwards, I also decided to leave because I was still young, I needed playing time to continue to progress. The most important when you're young is to play."
Mesut Ozil
Ozil made a promising start under Arteta, appearing in the new Arsenal boss's opening 10 Premier League fixtures. Yet the pandemic brought football to a halt for three months.
Unlike the vast majority of his colleagues, Ozil, who still had around a year left on his £350,000-a-week contract, reportedly refused to accept a wage cut. The playmaker didn't feature for the remainder of that season and later accused the club of being disloyal.
When questioned about Ozil's public remarks, Arteta insisted that the German's exclusion was down to footballing reasons. The Arsenal manager said: "It was just a football decision and my conscience is very calm because I have been really fair with him.
"My level of communication with him has been high, we know what to expect with each other. He has had the opportunities like everybody else. I'm sad that I had to leave three players out of this list but I tried to look everybody in the eye and be comfortable with it.
"With Mesut, I have this feeling because I have been very straight forward since I arrived at this club. It's nothing related to [Ozil's] behaviour. It's my decision."
Arteta then sidelined Ozil for the following campaign. The midfielder was excluded from both the Premier League and Europa League squads for the 2020/21 season, eventually leaving for Fenerbahce in January 2021.
Speaking to the Mirror in May 2022, Ozil's agent Dr Erkut Sogut looked back on the circumstances, saying: "I just ask for fair treatment like with any other player.
"But to not be in the squad at all, that was a couple of days before the window was closing and it was too late for us to react anyway. Maybe three days, four days before when I was told he might not be in the squad at all, he might not be listed.
"So that was a surprise. First for the Europa League and then for the Premier League as well, that was not expected by us at all. The coach didn't want him in the squad and the player has to accept that, what can you do?"
William Saliba and Mikel Arteta
William Saliba was not immediately given a place in Arteta's team(Image: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
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William Saliba
Astonishingly, Saliba and Arteta clashed several years back. The defender had been sent back on loan to Saint-Etienne after his original move to Arsenal in 2019 during Emery's tenure.
"For many reasons, that wasn't the transition year that he needed because he had a lot of injuries, some personal injuries and also with Covid and the French league getting cancelled – he didn't have that year," Arteta explained in late 2020.
"He needs that year of transition and we are trying to make the right decisions for him to give him the best transitional year for him to have the player we want in our future."
In January 2021, Saliba joined OGC Nice after being left out of Arsenal's Europa League squad, a move that sparked fierce debate among fans. Speaking to French media, the centre-back questioned Arteta's judgement and cast doubt over his long-term future at the Emirates.
"The coach immediately told me that I was not ready," Saliba said. "I would have at least liked to have had a chance to rediscover my rhythm. But this is football, it's like that."
He subsequently elaborated during an appearance on RMC's 'Top of the Foot' programme. "It is clear that so much has changed in the last year," he said. "When I saw that the coach changed a lot changed for me too. In this year there has been a lot of change.
"He judged me on two-and-a-half matches. I would have liked for him to play me more. But he told me I wasn't ready. I was waiting for him to give me a chance, but football is like that.
"When I initially came to Arsenal the league looked very good so I showed up to training and wanted to train on my own to show the coach I was ready. I am happy now, I want to play for Nice. The idea when you're part of a team is a better feeling for me."
While Arteta undeniably left Saliba feeling aggrieved, the Spaniard's verdict would prove to be spot on. The Arsenal defender went on to thrive in Ligue 1 before cementing himself as an indispensable member of Arteta's squad in 2022.
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