Mikel Arteta ‘declares’ himself to Guardiola: «I love him»

Arsenal boss talks about relationship with Manchester City helmsman

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has ‘declared’ to Guardiola after the Premier League draw with Manchester City .

“Firstly, because I love him, I respect him and I admire his team and everything he does. And this is sport. Our profession is one thing, our personal relationship is another. If my relationship had to suffer because we played against each other and one drew and the other won, or because of the number of times we lost, then I wouldn’t speak to him anymore. But that’s not our relationship, especially not the relationship that I consider we both have. So in sport, that will never interfere with my personal relationship, that’s for sure,” he said, in a press conference ahead of the match against Leicester , on matchday six of the Premier League .

“Obviously, he is one of our best players, one of the ones who has the most impact on the team in many aspects. But there were also many others. The team has coped extremely well, because we have an exceptional group. Many players are taking on a different role in leadership, in importance within the team and they have embraced that challenge,” he said.