Mikel Arteta Defends Arsenal's Handling of Player Departures

Mikel Arteta has pushed back hard against criticism of Arsenal’s handling of recent high-profile departures, insisting the club did not leave Gabriel Jesus or Gabriel Martinelli in the dark before their exits.

Jesus, now at Barcelona after a £12.5m move, had claimed “nobody told me anything” when he was told to train away from the first team in the build-up to his transfer. The comments reopened debate around Arsenal’s approach, especially after Ian Wright publicly questioned how Martinelli was treated before his £60m switch to Al Hilal, having been frozen out of early-season squads.

Arteta, facing the media on Friday, did not duck the issue.

“Very surprised, to be fair, especially because with Gabi [Jesus] I had an individual talk in the dressing room,” he said. “I don’t know what words were said, it is fine.”

He stressed that, from his perspective, the parting was cordial.

“The words we used for each other, it was all about gratitude,” Arteta explained. “I don’t know, it is OK. Sometimes I understand when you have to deliver bad news or news that people don’t expect, those things [you can] react [to].”

The Arsenal manager framed the situation as part of the harsher reality of elite football. Players leave. Feelings get bruised. Managers carry the can.

“Somebody has to be the bad cop,” he said. “If I have to be, I have to be and I understand. What is important is normally what happens three months later, six months later…”

At that point, Arteta turned to a recent example. Leandro Trossard left for Besiktas in a £15m deal this summer, but the Belgian was back in the Emirates Stadium dressing room after Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Chelsea, laughing and mixing with his former team-mates.

“When Trossard comes in, he is the dressing room with us, the atmosphere and the relationship you have,” Arteta said, using that reunion as evidence that bonds can survive even when careers diverge.

He clearly hopes the same will eventually apply to Jesus and Martinelli.

“Things got so far with other players that they left, at some point the relationship has been really good,” he concluded. “I hope that is the same case.”

For now, Arteta has little time for a public post-mortem. Arsenal travel to Sunderland on Saturday night, intent on shutting out the noise and protecting a perfect start to the season. The mood in the camp is lifted by a statement Champions League victory away to Napoli on Wednesday, a result that underlined the team’s growing authority on the European stage.

There was positive news on the fitness front as well. Ben White, who limped late on in Italy, is “fine” according to Arteta, a relief given his importance across the back line. Cristhian Mosquera is being monitored after a muscular issue, with medical staff still assessing the extent of the problem.

The questions about how Arsenal say goodbye will rumble on. Arteta’s focus, though, now rests on something far more straightforward: keeping a winning machine rolling into another hostile away ground, and proving that the strongest answers still come on the pitch.