Arsenal’s recruitment under Mikel Arteta has been outstanding in recent years, even if he was questioned over several signings.
Arteta was criticised when he chose to bring in David Raya and Kai Havertz last year, but both players have since become crucial players for Arsenal.
The Spaniard has revolutionised Arsenal since his arrival, despite continually being questioned over signings, but his big-money additions have been mostly huge successes.
One signing which was particularly scrutinised was Arsenal’s £50m acquisition of Ben White from Brighton in the summer of 2021, but he rapidly silenced his critics, and three years later, he is one of Arteta’s most consistent and reliable players.
White shone at Leeds and Brighton before joining Arsenal, but even at Elland Road, he had to win over a tough character in Marcelo Bielsa.
Ben White reveals Marcelo Bielsa criticism whilst at Leeds United
White joined Leeds on loan in 2019-20, and was their player of the season as he featured in every single minute of the Championship campaign as they were promoted to the Premier League.
The Englishman became one of Bielsa’s best players, but the Argentinian was not impressed when he first met him.
Speaking in an interview with Ben Foster on Prime Sport, White revealed that in one of his first conversations with Bielsa, the manager stated that he did not have the attributes to succeed as a defender.
“He didn’t speak any English, so someone would interpret him, and he said to me that was too slow, I wasn’t agile enough, and somehow I wasn’t mentally quick enough, and just walked off,” White stated of Bielsa.
“He didn’t speak again to me for months, but when he’d say something to you, you’d just do it. I think it was for him to say to me like ‘you’re not at the highest level, you’ve got so much to improve on,’ and obviously I did – that was after my first training session!”
How Sergio Ramos spotted Ben White’s potential to play for Arsenal
Long before his move to Arsenal, White was playing for Newport County in the lower leagues, and one day former Leeds director Victor Orta watched him alongside Real Madrid legend Sergio Ramos.
Ramos was one of the greatest defenders in history, but he was instantly impressed by a young Ben White.
“I remember in the first moment Sergio Ramos said ‘Who is this kid? Playing in the [defensive] line of Newport’. And he was really impressed,” Orta later revealed.
Bielsa was quickly won over by White’s consistency and technical ability, and he proved to be an outstanding centre-back for Leeds.
He has since become a right-back under Arteta, who has no issues with White’s speed or agility, with the defender linking well with Bukayo Saka on the right side, and the 26-year-old has developed into one of the best players in his position.
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