Barcelona manager, Xavi has praised fellow Mikel Arteta for his success at Arsenal and pointing out that his Barcelona background gave him a “headstart”.
Xavi stated that simply spending time in Barcelona’s academy as a player gave Arteta an early start on becoming a great manager, and that working as an assistant to Pep Guardiola didn’t hurt either.
“No, he’s not surprised me because he had the best references (having worked alongside Pep Guardiola at City).
“And because if you have played as a central midfielder at Barca you already have a headstart, you have the map of your pitch in your head.
“And because Pepe Reina is a close friend of his and has always spoken very well of him. I had a feeling that Arteta would do very well, but it was just a feeling,” Xavi said.