Arsenal winger Reiss Nelson has explained how boss Mikel Arteta now has a dressing room full of players that would do “anything for him”.
The Gunners sit pretty at the top of the Premier League with a five point advantage over nearest challengers Manchester City, but still some Arsenal fans are reluctant to put their beloved club in the conversation about the title race. It appears to be a sentiment echoed by the current crop of players over at the Emirates
Speaking exclusively to Mirror Football at the opening of his new cage pitch at Michael Faraday school in Walworth, Nelson insisted the Gunners aren't getting ahead of themselves despite their sensational start to the season 14 games in.
"I feel like the players have kind of – they are not thinking about the title, we are just thinking about each game as it comes. The manager has instilled that in us," the winger admitted.
Nelson, another one of Arsenal's famed Hale End academy graduates, also revealed a very interesting aspect of Arteta's management and one tactic he tries in a bid keep his players' feet on the ground and focus on the next fixture.
“After every game, we have a picture on the board of the plan for the next game, so it is game by game, step by step, it is about how everyone can improve themselves and make the team get better," he added.
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"Of course, the title is something that we all dream of and want to do, but that is not worth thinking about all the time.
Nelson is one of very few players in the current Gunners set-up that has not only been there from the very beginning of Arteta's reign, but was actually named in the starting XI for the Spaniard's first game at the helm - a rain-sodden 1-1 draw away at Bournemouth on Boxing Day in 2019.
Asked how it has been to witness Arteta's transformation, from an inexperienced manager looking to make his mark in his first role to one of the longest serving bosses in the Premier League, Nelson explained how the Arsenal manager's vision has been apparent from day one and is now close to fruition due to players purchased last summer.
"I feel like it has always been the same, he has always had the same blueprint in terms of what he wants to do it was just about getting the right players in to follow the same path.
"He has got a group of players now that would do anything for him, anything he says and if you have that as a manager, the things you want to do will come good as everyone is fighting and understands what you want."
Nelson's own situation at Arsenal, at least for the immediate future, seems unclear with his contract up in the summer. However, Arteta dubbed the winger a "special talent" earlier this season and could look to extend the 22-year-old's Gunners story.
