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Mikel Arteta: What Shocked Me Upon Arsenal Return

Mikel Arteta: What Shocked Me Upon Arsenal Return

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed what shocked him upon his return to the Gunners as manager, and not in a positive way.

It has been a difficult couple of years since legendary manager Arsene Wenger left the north London club in 2018, and was replaced by former Paris Saint-Germain boss Unai Emery.

The Spanish tactician was then sacked in November 2019, before ex-Arsenal star Freddie Ljungberg stepped into the role as interim manager. Arteta was appointed a month later, and he has now admitted that he returned to the club to find a huge divide between its supporters and the team.

"You cannot build something new (quickly), when something has been damaged and hurt badly, that you can see a big split between even our own fans and the team," he told the Gunners' official website.

"When you were in that stadium 10 months ago, I was shocked. You have to rebuild that (bond).

"In order to do that, you have to build some foundations, and afterwards start a process. You have to prioritise that process at the start, and where you are going to get to.

"To do that, you need some pieces that have to fill in there, and you have to start to create a puzzle and try to manage it because there will be bad moments and you don't want to break it.

"All the time, you have to be very alert because it takes very little to break what you are building."

Arteta won the 2019/20 FA Cup with Arsenal, beating Chelsea in the final, and picked up the Community Shield trophy just weeks later after a victory over Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool.

4) Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – £200 000
4) Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) – £200 000
20) Patrick Bamford (Leeds United) – £35 000
20) Patrick Bamford (Leeds United) – £35 000
19) Phil Jagielka (Sheffield United) – £50 000
19) Phil Jagielka (Sheffield United) – £50 000
18) Pascal Gross (Brighton & Hove Albion) – £50 00
18) Pascal Gross (Brighton & Hove Albion) – £50 000
17) Ben Mee (Burnley) – £55 000
17) Ben Mee (Burnley) – £55 000
16) Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa (Fulham) – £67 000
16) Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa (Fulham) – £67 000
15) Danny Ings (Southampton) – £75 000
15) Danny Ings (Southampton) – £75 000
14) Andy Carroll (Newcastle United) – £75 000
14) Andy Carroll (Newcastle United) – £75 000
9) Jack Grealish (Aston Villa) – £135 000
9) Jack Grealish (Aston Villa) – £135 000
13) Rui Patricio (Wolverhampton Wanderers) – £100
13) Rui Patricio (Wolverhampton Wanderers) – £100 000
12) Andriy Yarmolenko (West Ham United) – £115 000
12) Andriy Yarmolenko (West Ham United) – £115 000
11) Conor Townsend (West Bromwich Albion) – £115 0
11) Conor Townsend (West Bromwich Albion) – £115 000
8) James Rodriguez (Everton) – £140 000
8) James Rodriguez (Everton) – £140 000
10) Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace) – £130 000
10) Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace) – £130 000
7) Jamie Vardy (Leicester City) – £140 000
7) Jamie Vardy (Leicester City) – £140 000
6) Ben Chilwell (Chelsea) – £190 000
6) Ben Chilwell (Chelsea) – £190 000
5) Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur) – £200 000
5) Harry Kane (Tottenham Hotspur) – £200 000
3) Mesut Ozil (Arsenal) – £269 000
3) Mesut Ozil (Arsenal) – £269 000
2) Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) – £320 000
2) Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City) – £320 000
1) David de Gea (Manchester United) – £375 000
1) David de Gea (Manchester United) – £375 000

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