Former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has claimed that current manager Mikel Arteta has changed the values and the belief within the club to get them back on track. The Spaniard has transformed the Gunners, making an impressive start to the Premier League season by sitting top by the first international break.
Six wins from seven has seen them earn praise, with many tipping them for an unlikely title push by the end of the campaign. While a return to the Champions League is the more likely priority, Arteta has refused to discuss the potential of challenging for first so far.
"You’re not going to hear it [title contention] from me," the boss said when asked about the prospect. "It’s the next game, the next training session. We go day-by-day."
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The level of consistency shown by Arsenal over the past year is showing a clear improvement though, with Arteta's philosophy and plan beginning to pay off. It's taken time to get to this stage, but Wenger believes that a clear idea of the club's values has helped him reach this point.
Speaking to Sky Sports, the Frenchman said: "I would say you need to identify the values of the club and I personally think that Mikel Arteta was very conscious of the values of the club because he’s been educated as well at Arsenal, he was captain of my teams and he wanted to restore values of the club.
“Overall, I think he has done that well. After that you need to create a belief and a sense of belonging, that you belong to something special, something that is bigger than you, that you want to serve. On that front, he’s done well.
“I’m still in touch with them and overall I believe they are going the right way. Arsenal is a special club and has special values; a good balance between tradition and forward-thinking. They do that well again now.”
It's high words of praise from a manager who led the side to countless trophies in his tenure. He has even previously backed the Gunners to make a potential title push, saying: "There is no completely dominating team this season and Arsenal has a chance with the potential that is there.
“We used to be in the top four and why not again? You cannot even rule out the fact that they can fight for the title and hopefully they can do it.”
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