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On the eve of his six-year milestone in charge, Mikel Arteta has stated plainly that his continued role with the club is directly connected to winning major honors.

Reflecting on: Six Years in Charge

The Spanish coach took over on December 20th, 2019 and soon guided the team to an FA Cup victory within months. Yet, that initial silverware stands as his sole top-tier trophy after taking over from Unai Emery.

“Yes,” the manager said when questioned about remaining in charge after his current deal. “But it’s about today. And a lot of things must occur in the near future as well to warrant that continuation.”

He will mark the six-year milestone with a match versus Everton, the identical team Arsenal played just after his hiring was confirmed.

The Current Landscape

As second-placed Manchester City playing against West Ham in an earlier kick-off, Arsenal could be displaced first place in the Premier League before their own match begins. This situation arises despite Arteta managing a squad that has suffered in excess of one hundred injury setbacks over the course of last season.

He currently has a year and a half left on the contract he inked in 2024, but is acutely aware that success is required promptly.

Survival in the Job

He went on to explain, stressing the daily requirement to validate his position. “In my view a manager needs to warrant the right to be here tomorrow. And that’s how how you react, how you address the media, how you step into the dressing room, the instructions you give.”

He stated further, praising the consistent faith from the club's ownership, yet identifying the team's buy-in as most crucial. “Ultimately, the most important ones are those players... Over this half-decade, I’ve seen just players with a standard of focus, hunger for knowledge and dedicate themselves to the team.”

Latest Fitness Blow

Arsenal faces the upcoming game managing a fresh setback. Defender Ben White has been sidelined with a strain that is likely to see him miss action for the coming weeks.

Evolved Priorities

Even with the availability issues and the intense pressure, Arteta believes the club's “priorities and messaging” are completely changed from when he began his reign.

Arteta highlighted the record-breaking achievements as evidence of progress. “You look at the performances, all the records that we... were breaking... We still have yet to do that [win trophies]. But that tells you the caliber we've reached.”

Arteta concluded, “This is a standard that the Premier League has not seen before in the past. And we want to achieve even higher goals. And if we do that, I think we are on the correct trajectory to winning.”