Emmanuel Petit fears the lure of Barcelona could tempt Mikel Arteta to turn his back on Arsenal and seek a fresh challenge.
The Gunners boss is set to celebrate his sixth year in charge later this month, but for all the progress they have made under his charge major silverware has continued to elude the club.
Following an unprecedented summer of spending Arsenal are again in position to contest for major honours given they lead the way in the Premier League and Champions League table, while they have also progressed to the quarter finals of the Carabao Cup ahead of a last eight home tie against Crystal Palace.
Should Arteta end Arsenal’s trophy drought this season Petit, who himself swapped Barcelona for Arsenal during his playing days, fears the Spaniard could be tempted to return to his boyhood club.
‘Mikel Arteta could be tempted to come back to Spain, especially to a club he knew when he was very young,’ Petit told Snabbare.
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‘Honestly, with the work he’s doing, can you imagine if he wins something at the end of the season?
‘He would probably say, ‘Okay, fair enough. For me, after almost seven years, I’ve done it with Arsenal. I think it’s time for me to see something else.’ I can understand that.
‘But, in a way, I can also understand that if Barcelona knocks at your door, you will think, ‘Okay, listen, Barcelona is one of the greatest clubs in the world. I’ll be back in Spain, and the lifestyle is good for my family.’
‘I can understand everything, but here we go, it’s very simple, you will probably fight for the title in Spain, but there is no way you will fight for the Champions League.
‘Everything is based, most of it, on Lamine Yamal. They have top players in Barcelona, but they don’t have world-class players, just like Lionel Messi was back in the day.
‘Can you win the Champions League with these defenders? No way! That’s impossible. They concede so many goals. We saw that last season in the semi-finals against Inter.
‘How can you concede 7 goals in the semi-finals? Then you will tell me, ‘Yeah, but they scored six again. If you take away Lamine Yamal, what’s going on at Barcelona? Offensively yes, not defensively. It’s like a casino, they’ve bet everything on Lamine Yamal.
‘Lamine Yamal by himself cannot win the Champions League. Messi, with all the respect, I have such huge respect for him, he would not have been winning the Champions League if he didn’t have Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Carles Puyol, those guys.
‘And actually, if Arteta, as I said, spent seven years at Arsenal, if he wins something, he will probably say, ‘Okay, I will go to Barcelona, but something has to be changed, especially defensively.’
‘Because look at what he’s done so far with Arsenal. He brought success, he improved the team step by step from the back. He’s had the best defense in Europe for years now. They score goals because, behind, he’s got bosses.’