Mikel Arteta believes Arsene Wenger’s achievements in guiding Arsenal to 20 successive top-four finishes should not be overlooked as he tries to steer the club back into the Champions League.
Arsenal now sit fifth in the Premier League and level on points with Tottenham after being leapfrogged by their rivals following Spurs’ 5-1 drubbing of Newcastle yesterday, though they can regain fourth spot by avoiding defeat at Crystal Palace tonight.
Arteta’s side remain favourites to finish in the top four as they also have two games in hand over Spurs. If they were to qualify for the Champions League, it would be the first time they have played in the competition since the 2016-17 season.
That was back when Wenger was in charge and, as well as winning seven FA Cups and three Premier League titles, the Frenchman ensured Arsenal finished in the top four 20 times in a row - something Arteta believes shouldn’t be underestimated.
“I think the overall feeling for what Arsene did is exceptional. It’s excellent,” said Arteta. “I don’t think anybody would say it was good or okay. What he did to this football club is to transform it from the bottom to the top, and do it for many, many years. I don’t think anybody underestimated what he did.
“It (the top-four race now) is very different. The position is different. I think the context is very different. The team that were involved in that race, or what we were assuming at the start of the season would be, is probably different.
“Nothing changed. When I played here, I played to win the Premier League. I never played to say: ‘Can we finish fourth this year?’
“I never had that mentality and Arsene never installed that mentality around the club - and it’s no different to what we want to do now.”
