Mikel Arteta says it is a joy to have Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain back at Arsenal as the former Gunners star trains with the club again.
The England international has been without a club since leaving Besiktas in August but is not heading into early retirement and is hoping to find new employers.
The 32-year-old was pictured training with Arsenal’s youth team on Monday as the first team prepare for a Champions League clash with Slavia Prague on Tuesday night.
Arteta and Oxlade-Chamberlain both signed for Arsenal in August 2011 and the Spaniard has very fond memories on working with his fellow midfielder.
He hopes Arsenal can help the free agent secure a move to a new club, but feels the former Liverpool player can have a positive impact on Gunners youngsters while he is in north London.
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‘Top. Top character,’ Arteta said of Oxlade-Chamberlain at a press conference on Monday. ‘One of the best characters I’ve met in football.
‘If we can help him and give him the space for him to get up to speed and have the capacity to find a club. It’s a joy, the boys will learn from it.
‘I had the privilege to play with him and if he is around he will be a really good role model to have around the team.’
Oxlade-Chamberlain joined Arsenal from Southampton in 2011 and went on to make 198 appearances for the Gunners, scoring 20 goals and winning three FA Cups.
In 2017 he made a move to Liverpool in a £35m deal and went on to play 146 times for the Reds, scoring 18 times and winning the Premier League and Champions League.
He departed the Premier League in 2023 at the end of his Liverpool contract and signed for Besiktas, where he played 50 times, winning the Turkish Cup before his contract was terminated in August.
Where the experienced midfielder will move to next is not clear, after the BBC linked him with both former club Southampton and Birmingham City over the summer but neither move came to fruition.
The 35-cap England international will hope being involved with the Premier League leaders, even if it is just on the training ground, will encourage interested parties to emerge.