Manchester United legend Gary Neville has claimed that Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta could leave the club this summer if his side finishes in the top four.
The Spaniard replaced Unai Emery in the managerial hot-seat back in December 2019 and has had a rollercoaster time since, clinching an FA Cup trophy in his first season whilst also failing to finish in the top seven in each of his two Premier League campaigns. However, the former Manchester City assistant coach has consistently made bold decisions, freezing out high-earning veterans Mesut Ozil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, with his side showing a huge improvement in recent months.
In fact, the Gunners have won 17 of their last 25 league outings, the kind of form that has hugely impressed Neville. "I really like Mikel Arteta, I think he’s a brilliant coach", the former Valencia manager said at a Sky Sports fan debate.
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"I think the team is fantastic in terms of the young players they’ve got. But it’s interesting when you’re in a cycle of a club and you depress the ambition and have a significant period of failure because you then get really happy about finishing fourth. I found myself saying that about Manchester United. But it’s because of a depressed ambition.
"I think Mikel Arteta is a good operator. My concern is if Arsenal finish fourth this season – which to be fair, I think is 50/50, I still think there’s a long way to in that race – but if they finish fourth, that’s in some ways as good as it gets. You’ve got Pep [Guardiola], [Jurgen] Klopp, Man United, Chelsea, where can Arsenal go? They’re not going to compete.
"Mikel Arteta is a brilliant coach, I love that we’re seeing a team that he’s getting the maximum out of, I can see exactly how he wants to play, we all can. But he gets to fourth [and] if he was really hard about it, he’d probably say 'right, that’s the best I can do there, I’m going now and getting my next job'."
Arteta's current contract with the north Londoners is set to expire in the summer of 2023 and football.london reported back in January that the club are set to offer him a new deal at the end of the current campaign. When asked about his future with the club last month, the 40-year-old replied: "It is just that I am really happy here and my aim is to build with the club a winning team that when we watch it feels identifiable and that can transmit what we want football-wise and as an organisation.
"I am happy with the direction we’re taking, but I’m not happy with where we are that is for sure because we want to be competing and challenging with the best teams in this league in consecutive seasons. We’re not there yet but I think the team is evolving in the right direction. The project and the phases that we proposed, they are happening and there are a lot positives but we are not there."
