Mikel Arteta has responded to Jamie Carragher’s claims that the Arsenal boss is turning into Jose Mourinho.
Following Arsenal’s 2-2 draw against Liverpool, the Sky Sports pundit formed a comparison between Arteta and Mourinho.
The former Manchester United, Spurs and Chelsea manager isn’t the most popular figure around N5 however, his success in Europe can’t be ignored.
Carragher’s comments came as the pundit predicted that Arteta is becoming more of a Mourinho than a Pep Guardiola, sparking debate.
Mikel Arteta responds to Jose Mourinho comparison
The pundit generated a lot of attention by sharing his opinion on Arteta’s managerial style, with the man himself since responding.
“Mikel Arteta is slowly morphing into a Jose Mourinho type of manager and no one really thought that would happen,” Carragher claimed on Sky Sports, a statement that Arteta disagrees with.
When asked if Mourinho was an inspiration to him, the Arsenal manager said:
“For sure, I’ve known him since I was 15-years-old. He coached me in Barcelona. He’s won lots of titles and he’s someone to admire.”
Arteta’s comments in the press conference highlighted where Carragher was wrong in his assessment, as to the Spaniard, it was expected to some degree, as the Arsenal boss is a long-term admirer of Mourinho.
Arsenal have to prove Mourinho’s past comments wrong
Arteta is a fan of Mourinho, which is different to a lot of the opinion in North London when it comes to the Portuguese coach.
Mourinho has an extensive history with Arsenal, spawning from his jousts with Arsene Wenger, where the now Fenerbahce boss continuously taunted the Frenchman.
Back in 2007, the former Chelsea manager launched an attack at Wenger’s Arsenal for their inability to match the Blues’ trophy record at the time.
“They have great boys. I wouldn’t be sad if a club gave me three, four, five years and told me ‘You don’t need to win you can lose Premiership after Premiership, and you have three, four, five seasons to build’. I wouldn’t be sad.”
Mourinho ended his rant by saying, “The manager is top, the team has a great future. But they didn’t win.”
Arteta might be loosely compared to Mourinho, but now Arsenal fans will hope he can channel the villain’s success in the English game, with his past comments still worryingly relevant at the Emirates.
Receive a digest of our best Arsenal content each week direct to your mailbox
