Mikel Arteta says he will try to install a “winning mentality” at Arsenal after being appointed as Unai Emery’s successor in north London.
It’s the 37-year-old’s first step into management after spending three years working alongside Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, where Arteta has been credited for having a major impact on their success.
But after returning to the club where he spent the last five years of his playing career, Arteta says Arsenal’s players have to be prepared to accept “a different way of thinking” if they want to start being successful once again.
“I have to try to convince the players about what I want to do and how I want to do it,” Arteta said, quoted by The Telegraph. “They have to start accepting a different process, a different way of thinking, and I want to get all the staff and everybody at the club with the same mindset.
“We have to build a culture that has to sustain the rest. If you do not have the right culture, in the difficult moments the tree is going to shake.
“So, my job is to convince everybody that this is how we are going to live, and if you are going to be part of this organisation it has to be in these terms and in this way.
“What I have learnt [from Guardiola] is mostly that you have to be ruthless. You have to be consistent and you have to fit every day the culture of the club to create a winning mentality.”
Arteta has signed a three-and-a-half year contract with Arsenal and will be watching on as Freddie Ljungberg takes charge of his last game against Everton on Saturday.
Arsenal’s new boss will be in the dugout for the first time when they face Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth on Boxing Day.
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