Arsenal make Arteta their first choice
Arsenal director Josh Kroenke (born 1980) wants Mikel Arteta (born 1982) – a former Arsenal player and current first team coach at Manchester City – to be the club’s next manager. In 2013, Kroenke’s father, Stan Kroenke, Arsenal’s majority shareholder, gave his son a seat on the board. Josh made a statement at the time:
“It is an honour to join the board of Arsenal. This reaffirms our family’s long-term commitment to the club. Arsenal is in a strong position on and off the pitch. We are enjoying a period of growth for Arsenal and the Premier League. We look forward to an exciting future that includes winning trophies, increasing our already impressive support around the globe and extending our commercial opportunities. We strongly feel our experience in sports management, marketing and broadcast will be an asset to an already impressive board.”
It’s all about business. But that’s not to say Josh doesn’t want to win. It’s far easier to build the brand and cement your standing at the club when you’re on the TV celebrating victory, and the winning manager is a figure to whom you relate and have nailed your reputation. Josh thinks Arteta’s the one to help the investment pay off. Arsenal fans should hear him out, not least of all when they know that Mauricio Pochettino wanted to take his former teammate at PSG to Tottenham Hotspur when Arteta retired from playing in 2016.
The question must be why Arsenal didn’t see Arteta’s potential two years ago? Pep Guardiola was calling, and it can be argued that Arteta has augmented his skills working with the former Barcelona manager – just as he did when he joined Rangers from Barcelona in 2002, opining: “Scottish football was tough, really tough. It was really physical, people got at you and I had to improve on that a lot. I think I did that to get to the level that the Premier League required of me.” It worked. In the 2005–06 Premier League season, Arteta was voted Everton Fans’ Player of the Season and the Players’ Player of the Season awards. In 2008 he was the Liverpool Echo’s Sports Personality of the Year.
If Kroenke see the future in Arteta, it’s good news for the Gunners. The absentee owner and palsied board have guidance and a plan. Arteta it is, then.
Posted: 15th, May 2018 | In: Arsenal, Sports Comment | TrackBack | Permalink
