Mikel Arteta has said his friendship with Pep Guardiola will not be affected by the current title rivalry between Arsenal and Manchester City.
A number of City players criticized Arsenal's tactics after the 2-2 draw at the Etihad last Sunday, where Arteta's side were left floundering after losing Leandro Trossard to a red card late in the first half.
Several players could be seen rowing with each other after the conclusion of the match between the two best in the Premier League from the previous two seasons. Arteta worked under Guardiola at City before taking over as Arsenal head coach in 2019.
“I love him, I respect him, I admire him and I admire his team and everything he does,” Arteta said of Guardiola and their relationship in his Friday press conference. “This is sport. One thing is our profession and another is our personal relationship.
“If our relationship was damaged because one tied and the other won or the number of times they've beaten us, I wouldn't talk to him anymore. So that's not our relationship, especially the relationship that I consider the two of us.” In sports, a personal relationship will never get in the way, that's for sure.
“If you don't like opinions, then you shouldn't be in the position I'm in. It's pretty simple. Don't take it personally. It's part of our job. The things that really matter to you, make sure you handle them accordingly. the right way. That relationship really matters to me.”
Arteta added that Jurriën Timber and Ben White should be ready for his team's home game against Leicester City on Saturday, while summer signing Mikel Merino has returned to training.
Merino has yet to play for the club following his €37.5 million ($41.9 million) transfer after breaking his shoulder bone in his first training session.
“Tomorrow is too soon. Next week we'll see,” Arteta said of the midfielder. “He had partial training today. He's been working really hard. He looks good. It's about the healing of the bone and how mature it is to expose it to contact basically.”
“We're trying to keep him in the cage, because he's been pushing everyone (the physical therapists, the doctors, everyone) and he's ready to do it, and he really wants it. I think now we feel comfortable to start exposing him with contact and he looked very good in training.”
Goalkeeper David Raya is a doubt for the game against Leicester, having missed Arsenal's midweek win over Bolton through injury.
“We have to wait 24 hours to see if it looks good or not,” Arteta said. “It's not a risk, it's about a player being fit, available or not. We will make the decision tomorrow.”
