Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta would prefer to go head to head with pretty much any other coach than Pep Guardiola in a bid to win the biggest trophies in English soccer.
Not just because it means Arsenal is having to compete with Manchester City — a team Arteta believes is the best in the world.
Rather, it would avoid him having to compete with a friend and one-time mentor.
“I would prefer to do it with someone else, to be fair,” Arteta said Wednesday. “I want the best for him, genuinely the best for him, and when you are challenging with someone like this something comes in between that.
“So it’s a strange feeling.”
Arteta had better get used to it.
Arsenal vs. Man City is English soccer’s hottest new rivalry — well, for this season anyway — and they will be meeting three times over the coming months.
Twice
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