Arsenal captain coaches U16 side

Arsenal captain Mikel Arteta coached the Gunners U16 side on Monday, showing he is likely to take up a coaching role once he hangs up his playing boots.

The Spaniard, signed from Everton in 2011, has become a fan-favourite due to his commitment on the field and hard work behind the scenes.

33-year-old Arteta has had his fair share of injury problems in recent seasons, that have provided a blow to his first-team chances, whilst he’s seen Francis Coquelin develop into a key-player; stopping Arteta’s path to the line-up.

Whilst many could complain and demand regular football, Arteta seems to be taking things in his stride and remains a pivotal component of Arsenal’s squad behind the scenes; which is probably why he’s retained his captain’s armband.

Per Mertesacker and Santi Cazorla regularly wear the armband in the first-team, due to Arteta’s absence, but the veteran is valued highly by the squad.

Coaching the U16 side is another example of Arteta’s good-guy attitude and we’d definitely love to see the Spaniard remain behind the scenes after he calls time on his playing career.