Kevin Kilbane: Arsenal winning title would be greatest achievement, but City are stronger
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In the fourth part of an exclusive interview with Ladbrokes: Fanzone, Kevin Kilbane chatted about his memories of playing with Mikel Arteta at Everton and his thoughts on the job he is doing at Arsenal.
Click on the links for parts one, two and three in which he discussed the Republic of Ireland, Graham Potter and West Brom respectively.
Arsenal winning the Premier League would be one of the greatest achievements I’ve seen in my lifetime
I’d like Arsenal to win the Premier League for Mikel Arteta, absolutely I would. I can actually remember talking to Mikel just before he took the Arsenal job, when he was at Manchester City at the time. I bumped into him in Manchester and we spent about 10 minutes just chewing the fat about the old times. I knew he’d been linked with the Everton job at the time, so I asked him whether or not he was going to take it. He wasn’t really committed to giving an answer, even to me – he seemed a little cagey in his response.
But obviously the Arsenal job was on the horizon for him and it was the one that he wanted. He saw that job as a real opportunity to change things inside a club. He obviously finished his playing career at Arsenal, and so he probably recognised – even back then – what needed to change.
The team needed a bit of tinkering, and you’ve got to say he’s done an incredible job. he really has. Don’t forget, he’s been under a lot of pressure in that role – there was a time not so long ago when people were calling for him to be sacked. That’s just a given as a Premier League manager nowadays, though. It’s something you’ve just got to take on the chin.
The standard of football he’s got those lads playing, though, and the signings that he’s made, have been exceptional. They’re eight points clear at the top of the table. Do I think they can win the title? Yes. Do I think they will? No. I think they’ll get caught. I don’t think they’re as strong a squad as Man City, but if they were to win it, and continue what they’ve been doing up to this point, it would be one of the greatest achievements we’ve seen – certainly in my lifetime – given where Arsenal were two or three seasons ago. They weren’t qualifying for Champions League football, they needed a huge overhaul and fans were turning on the players and the staff.
Mikel recognised it just needed one or two things to change, and it hasn’t necessarily been about going out and smashing transfer records to bring in big names.
The pressure Mikel was under when it came to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, I think has been forgotten about by a lot of people. Aubameyang was the highest earner at the club, he was their captain and Mikel went toe-to-toe with him and said “look, you’re not going to play for me again”. That really did divide opinions at the time, and any coach that makes a decision like that in today’s game is instantly under so much pressure from the fans, but also from the board. But the board have stuck with their manager, so you’ve got to give them a lot of credit as well… and now they’re seeing the benefit of sticking by him.
Mikel’s sternness told me he would be a managerial success
I remember Mikel, first and foremost, as a brilliant footballer. He was an excellent player, I have to say that. He came into Everton when we’d just sold Thomas Gravesen and needed to replace him with someone who was going to give us something a bit different. Mikel came in and did that for us. He was incredible during our run-in and played a key role in helping us qualify for the Champions League.
What Mikel brought to our dressing room was not only the talent, but a real understanding of what it took to get over the line and achieve something – he had a real winning mentality. He had a bit of sternness about him, too. He wasn’t soft, he wasn’t what many would consider a stereotypical Spanish player coming over to the Premier League. He had a toughness about him. He wanted to push himself to the best level that he could, and subsequently that got him his move to Arsenal.
But it was always that sternness I remember with Mikel. Quiet, not overly chatty. he wasn’t a screamer, he wasn’t the kind of guy who would be going round the dressing room screaming in your face or anything like that. He had a real understanding of people and how to address people on an individual basis.
Whenever he spoke to you on a one-on-one basis, he just had this manner about him which meant you could relate to what he was saying. That’s a real skill in any walk of life and I can see clearly why and how he gets the best out of his young players. I’m sure he hasn’t changed. I’m sure he still has those conversations with his players. He’s absolutely able to relate to his squad, because of the player that he was. But he was also able to relate to everyone on a personal level because of the kind of person he is, and that’s the most important thing for me.
You can clearly see he’s got something special going for him at Arsenal, and I think it’s a testament not only to his coaching ability, but his man-management as well.
