Mikel Arteta has described his reunion with Mauricio Pochettino as “beautiful”, but there will be no love lost when Arsenal and Chelsea meet.
Arteta was a teenager when he first met Pochettino back in 2001. He had just joined Paris Saint-Germain and Pochettino, who was 10 years his senior, took the young Spaniard under his wing.
Pochettino became Arteta’s big brother, keeping an eye on him to ensure he did not fall out of line. Now, 22 years on, they will find themselves in opposing dugouts at Stamford Bridge this weekend.
“I think it is beautiful,” said Arteta. “It is something that happened with Pep [Guardiola].
“I think it’s great, that after all those years, football puts you in the situation when you face each other. Now we are both managing great clubs in the best league in the world. It does not get much better than that.”
For all of Arteta’s praise, the Spaniard insists sentiment will go out the window on Saturday. He and Pochettino may be ‘brothers’ but, like any siblings, there is room for rivalry.
“Go for him - and he’s gonna do the same [to me],” the Arsenal boss said of his gameplan. “We’re both winners. There is nothing else left there in 90 minutes.”
This derby is a big game for both sides, but for differing reasons. For Chelsea, a victory would kickstart the Pochettino era and show genuine signs of progress. There have been flickers of life so far, but they still currently sit 11th in the Premier League after eight games.
Arsenal are nine points clear of them in second and a win for them on Saturday would take the Gunners top. Victory would also be the perfect start to an important run of games that includes a trip to Sevilla in the Champions League on Tuesday.
The Gunners have already slipped up in that competition, losing to Lens earlier this month, and can ill afford to do so again.
Arsenal created momentum with their win over Chelsea just before the most recent international break, but that could disappear with defeat this weekend.
Stamford Bridge, however, has proved to be a happy hunting ground for them and Arsenal have won their last three Premier League away games against Chelsea. The Gunners have also won away at Stamford Bridge more often than any other team in Premier League history.
Arsenal had the best away form in the League last season and they have carried that on this year. They have a 100 per cent record from their three games on the road so far and have yet to concede a goal.
That has pleased Arteta, but he does not want it to come at the cost of his side having less attacking threat. So far, they have scored 16 goals in eight League games this season - which is the worst record out of the current top six.
“Obviously, we know the foundations to win games and where that’s coming from, keeping the amount of clean sheets we’ve kept in the last seven games that’s been very important to make the right steps, but we want to attack better,” Arteta said.
“A lot of teams have been defending with really low blocks, so open play is something, but set-pieces are not something very different to the game, they are connected, so it’s as important to be able to do that, because against low blocks we are going to be able to generate more free-kicks, more corners than last year, so that’s going to have an impact.”
Arsenal’s attacking struggles can be partly put down to injuries. They have been unable to field their front three from last season, with injuries hitting Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli at different stages.
The trio, however, are all hoping to be fit for this weekend and they can finally be reunited. That is one reunion that Arteta will hope to enjoy.
