Unai Emery reckons he laid the groundwork for what Mikel Arteta is achieving at Arsenal right now.
The Spanish manager was the first boss the club had after Arsene Wenger’s over two decades reign as manager.
He helped the Gunners to reach the final of the Europa League in his first season in charge and they just missed out on a top-four finish.
But he was sacked halfway through his second season at the club when results became poor.
Arteta has been the club’s manager since the end of 2019 and the former midfielder has received more backing from the Gunners.
The club has stuck by him even when the results have been bad, and Emery believes Arteta is getting more time than he had and he already started the work his fellow Spaniard is doing at the Emirates now.
He tells The Athletic: “Arteta is doing a good job, continuing what I began.
“He has had that patience from the fans, the patience they did not have with me. But I understand that.”
Just Arsenal Opinion
Considering how badly things have been at some points under Arteta, we truly have given him more time than Emery had.
The current Villarreal manager wasn’t as popular as Arteta is to the club’s fans, and that is important in determining how long a manager stays at his job.