Jose Mourinho has always been a controversial figure for Arsenal fans.
Right from his first spell at Chelsea in 2004, the self-proclaimed Special One has had a go at the Gunners and their legendary former manager, Arsene Wenger.
Mourinho did rave about Mikel Arteta when he was at Tottenham at the turn of this decade, but apart from that, he never really has nice things to say about the Gunners.
Now, out of nowhere, Mourinho mentioned Arteta’s comments after he signed a new contract and decided to highlight how different his job at Real Madrid is compared to that of the Spaniard.
“I read something interesting yesterday – something that could never happen at Real Madrid,” he said. “Mikel Arteta renewed his contract and said something like ‘we are still starting’ and ‘this is just the beginning’, and he has been there for years. The demands here are simply different.”
Unsurprisingly, Arsenal supporters have not taken to those comments kindly.
Mikel Arteta and Arsene Wenger
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Arsenal fans slam Jose Mourinho’s comments about Mikel Arteta
All Jose Mourinho had to do was mind his business and focus on bringing Real Madrid back to their best. Instead, he had to have a pop at Arsenal for absolutely no reason.
Gooners are not happy at all and have reminded the Los Blancos boss just how big a difference there is in his job and Arteta’s.
One Arsenal fan said: “Yeah, if Arteta started with a squad like Bellingham, Mbappe, Courtois and Vini Jr, the expectations would obviously be different. And he wouldn’t go three years without winning the league.”
Another wrote: “Bizarre comment. Arsenal have been a more successful club than Real Madrid on the pitch over the last three years. What we are currently building is better than whatever the hell Real Madrid have got going on. Fact. Despite the success, Arsenal are still thriving to grow, whereas Madrid are a failing club.”
“Jose just discovered that some managers actually have to build a team instead of being handed world-class players and still finding excuses,” said another.
Another supporter reacted by saying: “How do you compare what you found in Madrid and what Mikel found at Arsenal? If Mikel had Mbappe and Vini as you do, he would be 60 points clear in the league.”
“Arteta inherited Mustafi, Leno and Nketiah. You have Mbappe, Bellingham, Vini and Courtois. This is just a weird comparison,” said another.
Mikel Arteta’s team talk for Arsenal vs Real Madrid must already be ready
Nobody expected an unprompted comment from Mourinho about Arsenal and Arteta, but this could easily work in the Gunners’ favour.
The Arsenal boss has used taunts from the opposition in his team talks to fire up his squad in the past. Ivan Toney’s infamous tweet is a great example of that.
The Gunners take on Real Madrid in the Champions League in December, and we won’t be surprised at all if this comes up in Arteta’s pre-match team talk.
Arsenal battered the Galacticos 5-1 over two legs in their last encounter with Real Madrid. We’re sure fans would love something similar again in two months’ time.
That would silence Mourinho – for a little while at least.