David Moyes has heaped praise on Mikel Arteta for proving his early doubters wrong as the pair prepare to reunite once more at the Emirates on Thursday night.
West Ham boss Moyes takes his side across London to face Arteta’s Arsenal, who can return to the top of the Premier League with victory.
Moyes has often spoken highly of a player he had under his tutelage for several years at Everton, before selling the midfielder to the Gunners in 2011.
Arteta’s subsequent return to the Emirates to start his managerial career four years ago was hardly an immediate success, but he has subsequently restored the club to challenging for the Premier League title and, last season, earned a return to the Champions League.
"I've been so impressed with Mikel Arteta since he went into Arsenal,” Moyes said. “He won the FA Cup and the Community Shield, and there was some down comments but he hasn't half proved them wrong. I think most Arsenal supporters will be very happy with Mikel.
“Mikel was always someone who had a deeper thought, was always thinking about football and always looking to prepare himself well.
"I think he comes from a really good background in terms of the clubs he's been at, and then he's worked under Pep Guardiola - one of, or if not the, best manager in the world.
"He's dealt with becoming the manager of a club the size of Arsenal really well.”
Moyes has already gotten the better of his former player once this season, with West Ham knocking Arsenal out of the Carabao Cup.
While the Hammers were subsequently hammered in the quarter-final by Liverpool, they spent Christmas sixth in the Premier League after a fine run of form and Moyes is optimistic about the second half of the season.
"We're really pleased with the progress we've made,” he added. “We've got 30 points in the league, which is a really good total for us at this time of year.
“We want to keep it going and we think we can get better and do even more."
