‘Stuck with his beliefs’ - Arteta hails ‘fantastic achievement’ of Iraola at Cherries

MIKEL Arteta hailed the “fantastic job” Andoni Iraola has done since joining Cherries.

The pair grew up together in the same region of the Basque Country and are now set to share a dugout for the second time this afternoon, when Cherries face Arsenal at Emirates Stadium (12.30pm).

The Gunners swept aside Cherries 4-0 in the reverse fixture at Vitality Stadium back in September, thanks to goals from Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard, Kai Havertz and Ben White.

At that stage, Cherries were winless and in the relegation zone, but have since stormed up the Premier League table and head to north London in-form and in the top half.

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Discussing the work of Iraola at Cherries, Arteta said: “Fantastic job. To come into the Premier League and do what he’s done, huge credit to him, the coaching staff and the players obviously.

“They had a difficult start, they kept going with what they believed in and huge credit to him.

“It’s unbelievable what they’ve done in the manner that they’ve done it as well which is, in my opinion, very important as well. Congratulations because it’s a fantastic achievement.”

Asked how Cherries have been able to change so much since Iraola took charge, Arteta added: “Especially after our game, they had a really difficult start in terms of fixtures as well and that was a huge factor, but you could see that the team was always close to getting a result and creating a lot of problems for the opponent.

“Credit to him, he has stuck with his beliefs, he’s a really good coach, a great person and I’ve known him since we were very little and I wish him all the best.

“We spoke after our game. When you’re in those periods, sometimes you want to speak to nobody!

“But we had a little conversation there about my experiences and what I’ve been through and sometimes that helps.”

Asked if how difficult he will find it to put his friendship with Arteta to one side for the afternoon, Iraola said: “For me, it's not hard. It's a pleasure to play against him and have the chance to beat each other in the Premier League.

“I think he's doing amazingly well. Not only this season, the team has been improving every season with him. I think, he deserves to finish strong.

“I don't know if they will win the title or not, but he's doing very well and I consider him one of the best coaches right now.

“And for me it is a challenge to face a team like Arsenal with the atmosphere involved in the stadium. And we have to be really strong.

“Otherwise it's going to be a tough day. We have to be at our best because the level of the game and what is in play is, it's very important.”

Arsenal sit top of the league, one point clear of Manchester City.