Mohammed El Neny looked like he was on his way out of the club. However, a complete turnaround of fortunes has happened to the midfielder, under Arteta.
Our Egyptian went on loan to Besiktas under coach Unai Emery. It looked like that was his route out of the club. But the midfielder has pointed out that the love under Arteta has helped him stay.
Speaking to Arsenal Digital, the 28 year old said he feels wanted here, everyday.
Reflecting on the turnaround, Elneny told Arsenal Digital: “Before I came to London, I didn’t speak to him [Arteta] and I was a bit…. not stressed, but just thinking about what would be like.
“When I sat with him, I said, ‘The way you train, the way you want to play is the way I love to play’ and really I love the way we train, the way he is assisting everything in the club now and it makes me excited to give 100 per cent for the team.
“Under Emery, I was not playing much, that is why you can lose your confidence and your feeling to play. That is why when I went to Besiktas, on a one-year loan, I played always and brought the confidence back, and when I came back here I saw everyone happy for me to come back.
“Everyone was excited to see me back, and when I trained, everyone gave me good feedback, saying ’Mo, you did well’ and this makes you get your confidence back. I will build it and build it and every day I try to learn new things.
He added: “Yes [I feel wanted], all the time, every day. I think in any job if you wake up in the morning, try to learn new things and try to improve every day… this is what is always in my mind when I wake up. I have to go training, I need to improve myself in everything.”
He now has to compete for a starting with new signing Thomas Partey, Granit Xhaka and Dani Ceballos.
