Mikel Arteta almost quit Arsenal in 2020 (Photo by Dan Mullan, Catherine Ivill/Getty Images)
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is currently the Premier League champion, but it appears there was a time when he considered quitting his job soon after taking over.
The Spanish tactician took over for the 2019/20 season, but it took time for him to turn the Gunners into a serious team again.
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At the beginning of the following season, Arsenal were in very poor form, winning just one of their 10 Premier League games between 17 October and 19 December.
At the time, Arteta felt he had made a “terrible mistake” and was “very depressed” about the situation at Emirates Stadium, according to The Independent.
Mikel Arteta inherits ‘toxic’ atmosphere at Arsenal
The report also claims that the atmosphere at Arsenal when Arteta took over was “toxic” and that some players were clearly having a negative impact.
Although no specific names are mentioned in the report, it appears that Arteta has had to deal with some players faking injuries to miss certain games they did not want.
Even back in his time at Arsenal, Arteta seems to have noticed that some players have a habit of checking themselves mentally before the end of a season and starting to think about their time off.
Considering how bad things were, it’s no surprise that the 44-year-old had serious doubts about whether he could turn things around after a poor winter of 2020.
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Arsenal aiming for historic double
Arsenal, who have undergone a transformation under Arteta, will lift the Premier League trophy after this weekend’s final game away to Crystal Palace, before preparing to face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League final.
If Arsenal get their first European Cup, it could be one of their best ever seasons, perhaps even surpassing their unbeaten run under Arsene Wenger in 2003-04.
Even if Arsenal missed out, the fact that they were back at this level seems like a small miracle considering the turmoil at the club when Arteta took over.
