Arteta reveals he trashed Arsenal's office on day one and feared his career was already over

From the Newshound archive · first published 8 October 2026.

Mikel Arteta tore apart his own office and dumped computers, laptops and cables on the floor on his first day as Arsenal manager in December 2019, then summoned the entire squad to witness the chaos. He told players they had two minutes to restore order — and walked out, convinced his entire managerial career might end before it had begun.

Arteta had taken over from caretaker Freddie Ljungberg after Unai Emery was sacked during a miserable start to the season.