Arsenal legend ‘knows’ Arteta ‘dreamt’ of signing £50m star over ‘panic buy living a nightmare’
Arsenal legend Emmanuel Petit “knows” head coach Mikel Arteta was “dreaming” of signing an alternative to England international Raheem Sterling.
The Gunners were active in the summer transfer market. They invested around £100m to recruit Sterling, Riccardo Calafiori, Mikel Merino, David Raya and Neto.
Heading into the summer, one of Arsenal’s priorities was to sign a right winger to provide cover for Bukayo Saka.
Arteta‘s side were linked with several potential replacements and they eventually settled on Sterling after he was made surplus to requirements at Chelsea.
The winger previously worked with Arteta at Man City and they have a good relationship. Despite this, he’s been a bit-part player for Arsenal in recent months as he’s only made two Premier League starts.
Petit says Sterling was a “panic buy” as he “knows” Arteta wanted to sign Atletico Bilbao star Nico Williams – who was valued at £50m in the summer – after he shone for Spain at Euro 2024.
“Raheem Sterling was a panic buy,” Petit said in an interview with Instant Casino.
READ: Is Arteta’s problem that he’s turning into Mourinho or just away from himself?
“For me, Mikel Arteta knows that he’s missing players, numbers in his squad, quality players in terms of rotation.
“He knows that, so at the end of the transfer market during the summer, he knew that he had no choice just to get Sterling because he didn’t want to put the big money on the table for other players.
“I know that he was dreaming about Nico Williams, but he will never come to the Premier League. He will stay in Spain; he will go to Barcelona. Definitely.
“Sterling has been living a nightmare for years now. I think Sterling is probably one of the best examples of what life in the Premier League can do to a player that has tastes success after success after success.
“When you receive so much money for years and you win a lot of trophies, you’re not starving anymore. You lose your passion; you lose your priorities sometimes and you’re enjoying your life.
“I wonder if Sterling was starting his career that he would probably play differently. It was like that during my time as well. It’s common for human beings.”
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Petit has also revealed he is “worried about a few things at Arsenal” after recent losses at AFC Bournemouth and Newcastle United.
“I’m worried about a few things at Arsenal, and when I look at the future, I hope that they can come back from this and this is just a blip,” Petit added.
“Arsenal needs some players to raise their level on the pitch, but they’re missing something very important for me. They’re missing important players in midfield.
“You can see that in terms of rotation. Declan Rice should be given a rest. I’m watching him and you can see that he’s struggling physically and mentally.
“I’m worried about that because it’s not the same for Manchester City. The loss of Rodri has been hard to deal with, but they have options on the bench and are not worried about his absence.”
