Johnny Heitinga gives rave review to former team-mate Arteta and wants to work at Arsenal ‘to see how he operates’
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Johnny Heitinga played with Mikel Arteta at Everton for three seasons and would love to see how his former team-mate operates at Arsenal.
For my own experience and development, I’d love to give Mikel Arteta a call and ask if I could come to the club for a while, just to see how he operates. I think it’s good for a young manager to see how other coaches at the top of the game are working, and it’s always good to utilise the connections you have. So, if it’s possible, then yes, I’d love to spend some time with Mikel at Arsenal, because it can only benefit me and my career.
As a young manager myself, I’m very proud to see what Mikel is doing right now. I played with him at Everton and he was such a great second captain for us, behind Phil Neville. We were a really close group, with Tim Cahill and Sylvain Distin also, we were a strong unit at the time.
Mikel had the opportunity to work as an assistant with one of the best managers in the world in Pep Guardiola, and you can’t really get much better than that in terms of learning. The good thing for him is that Arsenal gave him an opportunity; a chance to be their leader, to manage that team in a really difficult situation. We know there were problems with the owners and the relationship between them and the supporters, and then football was hit with Covid-19.
Mikel inherited a very young squad and that’s something I must give a lot of credit to the owners for. They’re clearly looking at the future and want to build a new team with this manager firmly onboard. He had a tough time, but now everything is going his way and hopefully that continues, because they’re playing great football and beating strong opponents. Mikel deserves a lot of credit.
Mikel is a winner, he’s someone who wants to play football a certain way – and I think that came across in the recent Amazon documentary. I think he came across really well in that, and it’s really nice to see because, as a manager, it’s so important that your players are on board with your beliefs. You could be the best tactician in the world, but if you don’t have that relationship with your squad, you’ve got no chance. The chemistry between the players and the staff is so key, and it’s something you can clearly see at Arsenal right now.
Gunners can challenge for title
He’s showing that former players can be good managers. The most important thing is that relationship with his technical director. When a club chooses you to be their head coach or their manager, you have to know the ambition of that club. Things have to be realistic and you have to be on the same page as your technical director. When you look at Arsenal, for example, it’s very clear that the club want to get the best out of their young players, and for that to be a successful model. You then have to accept that your manager needs time with them, for everyone to gain experience.
It’s difficult because you look at Arsene Wenger. He did so much good for the club and brought the fans so much success, so it’s very difficult to go and replicate that. But, for the first time in a long time, for me, Arsenal seem to be playing the same kind of football we were used to seeing when Dennis Bergkamp was there. They play some really good football and all of a sudden they’re in a fight for the title.
If they can continue the way they’re going, then of course we have a title race in the Premier League. They have such a young squad of young, talented players. They’re a strong unit who have already felt the pain of missing out in the last couple of seasons. They’re young but they’re mature, and they’re growing in experience with every game. They’ve felt the pressure from the press and from their own supporters, and what that’s clearly done is make them a stronger unit. I see a team full of confidence, so, for sure, they can challenge for the title.
Of course, I’ll always want Everton to win things, but they’re just not going to be there this season, obviously. So, for me, it would be nice if Arsenal can win the title.
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