Mikel Arteta has committed his future to Arsenal by signing a three-year contract extension at the Emirates.
The Spaniard has penned a deal until 2027 with The Gunners that could take his stint in north London into an eighth year.
“I feel extremely proud, very excited and am looking forward to what is coming next. I’m proud to be where I am and have the relationships that I have with everyone at the club,” Arteta told the club’s website.
“I feel extremely lucky to work every single day with good people and the ambition we have here. I feel very inspired, I feel challenged, I feel supported and I want to do much more than what we’ve already done together.
“Together with the players and everyone at the club, we are looking forward to the coming years, with our supporters, who have emotionally transformed the club and the team. Our supporters have transformed individuals and we are different now.
“You can tell that we are different and for me, that is down to them. We look forward to continuing the journey together.”
Arsenal make the short trip to Tottenham for the north London derby on Sunday.
Belief in what we do.
Mikel Arteta has committed his future to The Arsenal ✊ pic.twitter.com/fo9zS9jvL5
— Arsenal (@Arsenal) September 12, 2024
Arteta’s previous contract was due to expire at the end of the current campaign, but was extended following back-to-back runner-up finishes in the Premier League.
He replaced Unai Emery in December 2019 and has since overseen a transformation of the club’s ambitions.
A former midfielder for the Londoners, Arteta’s appointment marked his first senior managerial job after working under Pep Guardiola as an assistant at Manchester City.
In the years since, Arteta has become Guardiola’s chief managerial rival in the Premier League by making his side City’s closest challengers.
The Spaniard led Arsenal to the FA Cup title in his first season in charge and, after three years of finishing outside the top four, he turned his side into title contenders.
In 2022/23, The Gunners finished second, their highest finish for seven years.
They repeated the feat last season, when an impressive 89-point haul still left them two points behind champions City.
Arteta’s side have started the new campaign with two wins and a draw and face rivals Tottenham Hotspur away on Sunday in the north London derby.
He faces a challenging selection dilemma after captain Martin Odegaard suffered an injury during the international break, with Mikel Merino and Declan Rice also unavailable through injury and suspension.