Arsenal 'bound for glory' under Arteta, says Xhaka

London, February 6: Granit Xhaka says Arsenal are "bound for glory" under Mikel Arteta and can even achieve something significant this season.

Arteta replaced Unai Emery in December 2019 and finished the season as an FA Cup winner, though the Gunners only finished eighth in the Premier League.

Prior to a 2-1 loss to Wolves on Tuesday, which they finished with nine men after red cards for David Luiz and Bernd Leno, Arsenal had gone seven Premier League games unbeaten.

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That came after a run of seven top-flight matches without a win, but Xhaka is confident Arteta has them on the path to success.

"We had the run without wins but even during that time, I think we have played without any self-doubt," Xhaka told The Guardian.

"Our mistakes, like the red cards – my own included [against Burnley in December] – have been the fault of each of us rather than one with the plan.

"As a collective, we've been functioning well and we can do something special, including this season. We are playing a very tight, compact game of late and we are also gleaning a lot of respect from the other big teams we are playing. I think we are bound for glory."

Arteta honed his craft as a coach under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City and Xhaka has been impressed by the amount of attention the Gunners boss pays to preparation.

"Mikel is an unbelievably good coach who puts a huge amount of detail into his work," said Xhaka.

"We have individual discussions for every match, a plan about what is expected for that game. He even hands out an individual match plan to each player. We are always very well prepared for our opponents.

"The individual work he does with every player – that's the trick. And after the match, there is a very detailed analysis of what’s been done. Who was where.

"As far as the opponents go, we work on our offensive line, where every person should stand and this detail is a huge advantage for me. Also, when you're without the ball, it gives you a great advantage for the anticipation of the opponents' moves."

Xhaka has managed to resurrect his Arsenal career, having been on the brink of leaving for Hertha Berlin after turning on booing fans when he was substituted during a Premier League game against Crystal Palace. The Switzerland international was dropped from the team and stripped of the captaincy following the incident.

"I took a big knock, I was quite wounded by the experience," said Xhaka.

"Hertha made contact, I discussed it with Arsenal and there were only a few details to complete for me to make that move. However, then Mikel arrived and we spoke. He wanted to hear my side of the story.

"I have to say it was the first time I had met him; I had no prior knowledge of him as a man or a coach. But we had a really great one-to-one chat – very open, very positive, very long. He looked deep into me, into my thinking, and he persuaded me that we should go on together, stick with each other on this Arsenal project. I am happy that I made the decision."