Mikel Arteta ‘sent clear message’ to Arsenal staff after argument with coach

Last summer, Mikel Arteta made the highly contentious decision to sign David Raya to replace fan favorite Aaron Ramsdale, which led to the dismissal of his assistant manager.

Following an argument with one of his top assistants, Mikel Arteta sent a strong message to his Arsenal team.

One of the four key additions the Gunners made last summer to try to build on their successful 2022–23 campaign—which saw them place second in the Premier League—was goalkeeper David Raya. Given that Ramsdale was a well-liked member of the team and was anticipated to stay as Arsenal’s top player for the next ten years, that turned out to be an extremely contentious decision among Gunners supporters as well as the media.

On August 15, Arsenal signed Raya from Brentford for a £3 million initial loan with a £27 million option to extend. However, The Athletic reports that the move also caused rifts within the Arsenal staff, with assistant coach Steve Round being among those opposed to the transfer.

Round, who joined the north Londoners in 2019 after serving as David Moyes’s assistant coach at Everton, was the manager’s most trusted lieutenant, along with Albert Stuivenberg. But because of his popularity among the players and staff, he took issue with their approach to Raya, believing that Arsenal’s carefully cultivated culture would be disrupted by replacing Englishman Ramsdale.

Furthermore, considering that Ramsdale had just signed a new contract a few months prior, he thought the team would be better off investing in other areas rather than increasing its resources in the goalkeeping department. But in the end, Arteta’s choice was the most important one.

A’mutual agreement’ to leave Arsenal was announced in July 2023, before Raya was even signed, and it was said that this disagreement contributed to Round’s decision to leave. It is believed that this made a clear statement to the other members of Arteta’s team that the Gunners were constantly searching for innovative ways to solve problems and were willing to make even the smallest improvements.

Coaching prodigy Carlos Cuesta, 28, was promoted by Arteta. Speaking six languages, the highly regarded Mallorcan has grown in stature at London Colney. He even demonstrated his coaching prowess in the 2022 documentary “All or Nothing” on Amazon Prime.

Cuesta’s promotion served as a demonstration to Arteta’s junior staff members that they had a route to advancement within Arsenal.

Following Raya’s arrival, Arteta made headlines when he said at a press conference that he might consider changing goalkeepers during games when necessary. The Spanish stopper debuted against Everton and, by September 17, had completely dethroned Ramsdale from the top spot.

He had a rocky start to his tenure and committed a few high-profile mistakes, which Arteta and his team attributed to the intense scrutiny he was under. Nevertheless, the 28-year-old quickly paid back his manager’s faith; as Arsenal finished just two points short of the championship, his 16 clean sheets this season set a Premier League record and earned him the Golden Glove award.

This summer, his transfer will become permanent, with prearranged contract terms. Meanwhile, Ramsdale is anticipated to depart.

For most of the season, the England goalkeeper had to be content with his bench role. He only made two appearances, both of them against Brentford, after Raya was benched for the match against his old team.