It might seem like ancient history by now, but Mikel Arteta did play for Rangers for a couple of years early on in his career. Thus, Celtic fans will not be too fond of the Spaniard. Of course, he went on to achieve the majority of his playing success later on, representing both Everton and Arsenal to great success.
Since then, Arteta has moved into management and is enjoying quite a bit of success in that field as well. He is closing in on guiding Arsenal to their first Premier League triumph in almost two decades. Nobody could have expected that to be a possibility, at the start of the campaign.
Of course, Arteta will know about life in Glasgow, having represented Rangers for a couple of years. And he had only positive things to say, and revealed that he recommends people to move there if they are presented with the opportunity to do so.
As reported by Football Scotland, Arteta told Rangers Musuem:
"“I loved Glasgow, I always recommend it to people to move there if they have the chance. They will be surprised. It’s hard to find people as passionate as loyal and as open as the people in Scotland and Glasgow in particular.”"
Celtic fans will be happy with Arteta’s comments
Of course, Arteta’s comments seem to take Celtic fans into account as well. And it is not often that Hoops supporters expect to hear a positive message from former Rangers players, especially those who have reached the heights of the Spaniard.
It remains to be seen if Arteta is successful in guiding Arsenal to the Premier League title or not. Manchester City are their main contenders for it at the moment, but the London team have to be considered as heavy favourites as things stand.
Of course, there is another reason that Celtic fans would be keeping their eyes on Arsenal. That is because of the presence of Kieran Tierney there. The Hoops are believed to have a sell-on clause included in his deal and recent rumours have suggested that he could be on the move in the very near future.