"That’s how strong of a character he was" - Theo Walcott claims Arsene Wenger was scared of former Arsenal star
Former Arsenal star Theo Walcott has claimed that legendary manager Arsene Wenger was 'afraid' of current Gunners boss Mikel Arteta. He also said that the Spaniard had shown traits of growing into a manager during his playing days, sharing an incident from training.
Speaking on ‘Up Front’ with Simon Jordan, Walcott revealed that Arteta wanted the players to talk openly without any official or manager before every training session to build team spirit. He said:
“I remember my experience with Mikel when he was a player. Again, hindsight is a great thing, but I look at it now. The turning point for me was when we weren’t making top four at the time, and he, I mean, Arsene’s there. We have training in 30 minutes. Mikel’s literally locked the dressing room, players only, and it’s like he was, I’m taking control of this whole space. I’m going to say how it is."
He added:
“It’s an open room. If anyone else wants to speak, I’ve always stuck with me. I remember it was like he was the manager there in that moment. For me, that was a turning point thing, and I was like, this guy, he’d be a manager. I’d love to play with this guy. And then after that, we made top four that year, and it was that one particular speech. Arsene was outside waiting for us to train. We were not out there, because Mikel stopped training. That’s how strong of a character he was. Even Arsene was afraid of him.”
Theor Walcott and Mikel Arteta played 85 matches together at Arsenal. The two combined for a goal just once, which came in a 1-0 win over Queens Park Rangers (QPR) in the 2012/13 season.
Theo Walcott backed Mikel Arteta to further improve as Arsenal manager
Theo Walcott talked about Mikel Arteta's spell as the Arsenal manager earlier this year, backing the Spaniard to further improve. He believes that the Spanish tactician is developing quicker than many others, saying on BBC Radio 5:
"I think it is going to turn him into a better man and a better manager than he already is. I think he is developing quicker than a lot of other people have, he has learned a lot through Pep Guardiola and as well with himself playing in the Champions League."
Arsenal finished second in the Premier League in the last two seasons but failed to win silverware despite their best efforts.