Mikel Arteta Defends Arsenal's Handling of Player Departures
Mikel Arteta has pushed back hard against claims that Arsenal mishandled the departures of Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli, insisting difficult conversations were held and respect was maintained even as both Brazilians moved on.
The Arsenal manager found himself in the firing line after Jesus, now at Barcelona following a £12.5m switch, revealed he had been told to train away from the senior squad and complained that "nobody told me anything" in the build-up to his exit.
Those comments landed in the middle of an already simmering debate. Ian Wright had publicly questioned the club’s treatment of Martinelli, who was frozen out of early-season squads before securing a £60m move to Al Hilal in the Saudi Pro League. For many supporters, it painted a picture of a ruthless regime edging into cold detachment.
Arteta rejected that version outright.
"Very surprised, to be fair, especially because with Gabi [Jesus] I had an individual talk in the dressing room," he said on Friday. He stressed that the conversation took place, even if memories of the exact phrasing now differ. "I don't know what words were said, it is fine."
He insisted their final exchanges were anything but hostile. According to Arteta, the parting mood was one of mutual appreciation.
"The words we used for each other, it was all about gratitude," he explained. "I don't know, it is OK. Sometimes I understand when you have to deliver bad news or news that people don't expect, those things [you can] react [to]."
This is the thin line he walks: the manager who promises care and clarity, yet still has to tell big players their time is up.
To show that relationships can survive the brutality of elite football, Arteta pointed to Leandro Trossard. The Belgian left for Besiktas in a £15m deal this summer, yet he was back in the Emirates Stadium dressing room after Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Chelsea, sharing embraces and jokes with his former team-mates.
For Arteta, that scene mattered. It was evidence, he argued, that the human bond can outlast the contract.
"Somebody has to be the bad cop," he said. "If I have to be, I have to be and I understand. What is important is normally what happens three months later, six months later, when Trossard comes in, he is the dressing room with us, the atmosphere and the relationship you have."
He believes time will eventually soften any anger from Jesus and Martinelli as well.
"Things got so far with other players that they left, at some point the relationship has been really good," he said. "I hope that is the same case."
For now, he has a dressing room to protect and a perfect league start to defend.
Arsenal head to Sunderland on Saturday night intent on shutting out the noise and extending their flawless opening to the season. The mood is buoyant after a statement Champions League win away to Napoli on Wednesday, a result that reinforced the sense of a team growing in authority on two fronts.
Arteta delivered a key fitness bulletin too. Ben White, who limped late on in Italy, is "fine" and in contention. Cristhian Mosquera is less certain, with the defender still being assessed as he manages a muscular issue.
The questions about exits will linger. So will the scrutiny on how Arsenal handle their stars when the cycle turns. But at Sunderland, none of that will matter if Arteta’s side walk off with their record intact and their momentum untouched.
