Mikel Arteta on Premier League Shake-Up and Arsenal's Ambitions

Mikel Arteta believes the Premier League’s managerial shake-up – led by Enzo Maresca’s arrival at Manchester City – could be exactly what drives Arsenal to a higher gear this season.

On Sunday in Cardiff, the Arsenal manager will stand opposite Maresca for the first time since the Italian stepped into Pep Guardiola’s shoes at the Etihad, with the Community Shield offering an early glimpse of the new landscape at the top of English football.

New faces, new edge

Nine Premier League clubs start the campaign under new management, a level of churn that has only sharpened the focus on Arsenal as many people’s pick to reclaim the title. Arteta wanted no part of that narrative.

He batted away talk of favourites and avoided dwelling on Maresca in his pre-match press conference, quickly widening the lens to the rest of the new coaching cast – including Xabi Alonso and Roberto De Zerbi, both now in London rival dugouts.

“Well, the competition will be with a number of managers too, alongside Maresca, and with some of the new managers who have joined the league, who are exceptional too,” Arteta said.

He stressed that the touchline talent across the division will test him and his players every week.

“We know this league has a lot of great managers. It is extremely difficult every week to prepare for matches against them. This will raise our level and my level for certain, and we will try to be better.”

Arsenal’s strengths – and their ceiling

Arteta was clear: Arsenal know what they are good at, but they are not close to satisfied.

“Every club has its strengths. Some clubs because of the many victories they have achieved over the past ten years, some because of their squads, and some because of the money they have spent,” he said.

“We know our strengths, and they are linked to what we have delivered over the past four or five years in a very consistent manner, but we can also be better, and that is what we are focusing on to maintain this consistency.”

He has a word for the platform Arsenal have built. But he does not want to sit on it.

“I have called the matter stability, but I do not want to be stable, I want to be better and more ambitious. That is what we want.”

Rice, Saka and new blood

Team selection for Cardiff will go right to the wire. Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka are both back in training after a gruelling World Cup on the back of a long, physically demanding 2025–26 season, and Arteta will wait as long as possible before deciding if they are ready to feature against City.

Summer signings Bruno Guimaraes and Christos Tzolis are pushing for their first competitive minutes in an Arsenal shirt, adding a fresh dimension ahead of a meeting with a City side who beat Arsenal twice in three games last season, including the League Cup final at Wembley.

Life after Guardiola

Guardiola’s departure from Manchester City has not tempted Arteta into declaring the champions weakened or the title race simplified.

Asked if City remain Arsenal’s main rival for the crown, he refused to narrow the field.

“We will have a lot of competitors,” he said. “When looking at the squads, the managers, and the clubs they belong to, but we know that.”

So the message is simple: look inward.

“We need to focus on ourselves and make sure we get the maximum out of all the resources we have, to give ourselves the best possible chance. And after that, day by day, it will be a very long journey.”

That journey starts in Cardiff, with a new City, a new cast of managers, and an Arsenal side convinced that stability is only the base camp, not the summit.