Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta has opened up on the “emotional” moment when he was offered the chance to sign a new contract at the Emirates.
The club announced on Friday that Arteta had extended his contract until the end of the 2024-25 season.
Since arriving in the dugout in December 2019, Arteta has already scooped the FA Cup and Community Shield despite disappointing back-to-back eighth-placed finishes in the Premier League.
However, Arsenal are now in the driving seat for a return to Champions League football, sitting two points clear of Tottenham Hotspur in the top four ahead of the weekend’s fixtures.
The Gunners reignited their Champions League charge with consecutive victories over Chelsea, Manchester United and West Ham United after three previous losses to Crystal Palace, Brighton & Hove Albion and Southampton.
Arteta has now revealed that the new contract was put on the table in the wake of those defeats, and the 40-year-old was touched by the timing of the club’s offer.
“The club offered me the contract when we lost three matches… that doesn’t happen in football. I got emotional when I saw it. That tells me these guys are serious,” Arteta told reporters at Friday’s press conference.
“The club was so decisive and committed to do it now. They wanted to bring clarity for the project and not have to worry about that in the summer.”
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