Pep Guardiola has commended the progress Mikel Arteta has made at Arsenal ahead of their crucial Premier League showdown against Manchester City on Sunday.
The Gunners will head to the Etihad Stadium fresh off their first Champions League match of the season, having travelled to face Atalanta on Thursday.
Their challenge is set to be even tougher with the absence of captain Martin Odegaard, who Arteta confirmed will be sidelined “for a while” due to an ankle injury.
Sunday’s game is pivotal for Arsenal, as they seek to halt Man City’s pursuit of a fifth consecutive Premier League title.
Last season, Arteta’s side managed to hold Man City to a 0-0 draw in March, a point that proved vital in Arsenal’s strong finish to the season.
City themselves are coming off a frustrating start to their Champions League campaign.
The defending Premier Lague champions were held to a goalless draw by Inter Milan on Wednesday, a match that also saw key player Kevin De Bruyne sustain an injury.
Pep Guardiola, however, is fully focused on the upcoming clash with Arsenal.
He also understands the challenge posed by his former assistant, who has transformed the Gunners into serious contenders.
“I don’t know the idea of Mikel, of how they’re going to play. I’ll have to read it and adapt it,” Guardiola said after the Inter draw.
“But it’s another unbelievable team, they defend really well, they don’t concede chances, they don’t concede goals, they are really good in many aspects, they control everything.
“They’ve been the biggest challenge, title contenders the last two seasons they are there and they will be there for many years because they create a deeper squad, a young team.
“So it’s another good test but we are in September, so I like to see the team, many things we are better than the past, even better than the past how we’ve done it, we’ll see what happens on Sunday.”
He added: “We played very well.
“I love my team – I have fantastic players. Inter is a team that defends exceptionally well – they are masters not only in defence but also in transition phases.
“Therefore, I am content with our performance. I liked everything.
“Of course, I would have preferred to win, but I have no regrets as Inter is the best team when defending deeply with 11 players. I admire their organisation of play.
“We knew how challenging this match would be, hence I say that we played well, considering the quality of the opponent.
“Knowing how Inter would defend, I understood that we wouldn’t be able to create 25 goalscoring opportunities – it is simply impossible when their players assist each other so well.”
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