Date: 11th May 2016 at 8:56pm
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Ahead of Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal farewell this weekend, Jonathan Kaney looks back at the Spaniards career in north London.

With Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal playing career coming to an end at the end of the season, Gooners will say goodbye to the best and most successful club captain we’ve had in a decade.

With 109 appearances for the club, 14 goals and two successive FA Cup trophies and Charity Shield’s as club captain, his leadership on the pitch and behind the scenes has been vital in our ascent back to silverware after nine tough years without a trophy.

He’s been a vastly underrated part of transforming the clubs fortunes and he will be much missed when he hangs up his boots by the manager, the squad and the fans.

Before the Spaniards move to the Emirates from Everton in 2011, he was one of the most dangerous players in England. A dead ball specialist, superbly creative and a leader for the Toffees on and off the pitch, he was their star man under David Moyes as Everton routinely overachieved and even tasted Champions League qualifying.

Mikel Arteta

He had given his all during his time at Goodison Park and in 2011, at the age of 29, Arsene Wenger came calling on deadline day and he moved to the Emirates in for a reported £10m in search of trophies.

With the departure of Samir Nasri to Man City the week before and the ugly sale of Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona in the summer, at the time it was an underwhelming signing for Arsenal fans. Many felt his best days were past him and questioned whether he was up to replacing the quality of the players we had lost.

Arsene didn’t sign him to replace them though. He signed him to be the missing piece of a team that needed experience and his unique set of outstanding passing, creative and leadership skills. He was an intelligent old head, with excellent positional play, decision making and still had enough years in him to be a force in the Premier League.

He gave everyone around him a platform to go and play, safe in the knowledge of both a defensive shield and attacking support. It’s a rare quality for a player to have both sets of skills and the logic behind his signing was easy to see when you look at a midfield with players like Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere and Alex Song who were all supremely talented, but young and inexperienced. Arteta was the pefect player who had all the qualities Arsene was looking for.

In his five-year stay at the Emirates, he’s been a solid and dependable midfielder and a fantastic presence on and off the pitch.

He never did quite manage to replicate the electric form that he showed at Everton where he was one of the best midfielders in the Premier League and landed a PFA Player of Year nomination. But there’s no doubt he’s been a succesful signing and will be remembered fondly by the Gunners faithful.

He’s spent his Arsenal career dictating play in midfield, being tenacious in the tackle and calmly creative. He’s always been dependable and hard working in every game and on his day he could score a belter. Gooners will never forget his best moment in an Arsenal shirt in 2012 when he robbed Gareth Barry in midfield before charging forward and curling a beauty past Joe Hart in the 87th minute to win the game at the Emirates.

Mikel Arteta FA Cup

As with all great players, there comes a point that things change and it’s been clear for some time that with increasingly declining performances, age creeping up on him and persistent injury problems that his playing career is coming to end. His leadership and motivational ability off the pitch is much greater now than his ability on it, and he will bow out as a player gracefully at the end of the season with his head held high.

There is plenty of speculation that he will retire from playing and move into coaching, with Arsene Wenger keen for him to stay on behind the scenes at the Emirates. Arteta is one his closest and most trusted players and as a hugely respected member of the squad, Arsene will be gutted to lose him. If he is thinking of hanging up his boots to coach at the end of the season though, it’s absolutely crucial Arsene keeps him at Arsenal – particularly with rumours swirling that Man City are lining him up to work with Pep Guardiola.

Arteta has been a great servant and Gooners will remember him fondly and wish him well. Here’s hoping he starts the next chapter of his career at the Emirates.

 

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