• Football
  • Boxing
  • UFC
  • Home
  • Football
    • England
    • Transfer News
    • Premier League
    • Champions League
    • Lionel Messi
    • Cristiano Ronaldo
    • EA FC 25
    • Wrexham
  • Boxing
    • Tyson Fury
    • Anthony Joshua
    • Oleksandr Usyk
    • Mike Tyson
    • Jake Paul
    • Logan Paul
  • UFC
    • Dana White
    • Conor McGregor
    • Khabib Nurmagomedov
    • Jon Jones
    • Paddy Pimblett
    • Joe Rogan
  • Other Sport
    • Athletics
    • Formula 1
    • MMA
    • Motorsport
    • NBA
    • Darts
    • NFL
    • Snooker
    • Wrestling
    • Tennis
    • Cricket
    • Golf
  • Advertise
  • Terms
  • Privacy & Cookies
  • LADbible Group
  • LADbible
  • UNILAD
  • GAMINGbible
  • Tyla
  • UNILAD Tech
  • FOODbible
  • License Our Content
  • About Us & Contact
  • Jobs
  • Latest
  • Topics A-Z
  • Authors
Facebook
Instagram
X
Threads
Snapchat
TikTok
YouTube
Arsenal had concerns over transfer Mikel Arteta personally intervened in to get over the line

Home> Football> Football News> Arsenal

Updated 14:59 15 Jan 2025 GMTPublished 14:40 15 Jan 2025 GMT

Arsenal had concerns over transfer Mikel Arteta personally intervened in to get over the line

The Spanish manager has been heavily involved in several transfers since arriving at the club.

Ben McCrum

Ben McCrum

Featured Image Credit: Getty

Topics: Arsenal, Transfers, Mikel Arteta, Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice, Gabriel Magalhaes, Football, Premier League, Champions League

Ben McCrum
Ben McCrum

Ben is a sports journalist who specialises in football and MMA. He has written for publications such as Manchester Evening News, WiganToday, Manchester World and beIN Sports. Throughout his career he has interviewed top athletes in MMA including Tom Aspinall and Michael Bisping.

X

@benmcc14

Advert

Advert

Advert

The transfers that Mikel Arteta personally made sure Arsenal completed have been revealed.

Since taking over as Arsenal manager in December 2019, Arteta has overseen some of the best transfers in the club's recent history.

Most notably, Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and Gabriel Magalhaes all joined the Gunners during Arteta's reign.

Advert

And now, the four players that Arteta personally stepped in to make sure Arsenal signed have been named.

On Tuesday, Arsenal shocked the footballing world after reports emerged claiming that the Gunners had successfully agreed a summer move for long-term target Martin Zubimendi.

And, as per The Athletic, the deal is just the latest in a series of transfers that have been led by the Arsenal boss, who was impressed with the midfielder's performances during Spain's victory at the 2024 European Championship.

Advert

Speaking about the deal on The Athletic FC Podcast, transfer expert David Ornstein said: "It goes to underline Arteta's influence and power at the club over recruitment."

Prior to pushing Arsenal to pursue Zubimendi, Arteta encouraged the club to enquire about the availability of his Real Sociedad teammate Mikel Merino, who he saw as the perfect fit for the left-eight position.

The Spanish manager felt that neither Kai Havertz nor Declan Rice were suitable for the role, and instead wanted "a physical player with duel-winning abilities and penalty-box threat."

Despite this, Arsenal weren't convinced by Merino, with his age, 28, leading to concerns that they would struggle to get a return on their £31.6million investment ahead of his contract expiring in 2028.

Advert

However, the club ultimately stood by their manager, signing the Spaniard who has now made 21 appearances for Arsenal.

And Merino wasn't the only player that caught Arteta's eye at Euro 2024, as he also drove Arsenal’s interest for left-back Ricardo Calafiori, who joined the club for £42m in July.

Having struggled with injuries since joining Arsenal, starting just 12 matches, the jury is still out on Calafiori.

Riccardo Calafiori joined Arsenal from Bologna last summer. (Image: Getty)
Riccardo Calafiori joined Arsenal from Bologna last summer. (Image: Getty)

Advert

If he is to convince fans that he was worth his price tag, he will likely need to have an impressive second half of the season if he is to live up to Arteta's high expectations.

This also appears to be the case for Havertz, another signing that Arteta pushed for in recent years.

According to The Daily Mail, despite worries behind the scenes at Arsenal, Arteta insisted the club moved for Havertz in the summer of 2023.

The were unsure exactly what role the German would play at the club, but decided to back their manager and sanction a massive £65m deal for Havertz, who joined from London rivals Chelsea.

Advert

And, despite a slow start, the transfer appeared to pay off, as the German finished the season with 20 goals or assists in 37 Premier League appearances.

However, Havertz appears to be struggling again so far this season, leading to concern from several fans, and, like he did in 23/24, will need to significantly improve his performances to justify the huge fee that was paid for him two years ago.

  • Arsenal dealt major injury blow as Mikel Arteta confirms 'significant' damage
  • Arsenal fans think Mikel Arteta used 'secret tactic' he previously joked about in PSV win
  • Ex-Man Utd star who was 'knocked out by Roy Keane' after defeat now set to join Mikel Arteta at Arsenal
  • Mikel Arteta set to block exit for Arsenal star in final hours of window with transfer agreement 'close'

Choose your content:

an hour ago
2 hours ago
3 hours ago
  • an hour ago

    Ex-Man Utd boss Ralf Rangnick taken to hospital as Austrian FA issue statement

    Rangnick has been forced to go back under the knife following complications.

    Football
  • 2 hours ago

    Andy Robertson wrote heartbreaking message to Diogo Jota in note left at Anfield after his tragic death

    The Liverpool star paid his respects at Anfield on Tuesday.

    Football
  • 3 hours ago

    Viktor Gyokeres transfer saga takes ANOTHER twist after key issue during negotiations that could end deal

    Arsenal are hoping to complete a deal for the Sporting striker.

    Football
  • 3 hours ago

    Chelsea fans are convinced one player needs to leave following win over Fluminense in Club World Cup

    Chelsea are in the final of the FIFA Club World Cup.

    Football