Liam Rosenior may be looking to prove the doubters wrong at Chelsea but Mikel Arteta says that has never been his motivation as Arsenal boss.
Chelsea host the Gunners on Wednesday night in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-finals, in just Rosenior’s second game as manager.
The new Blues boss is making a huge step up to take charge at Stamford Bridge from Ligue 1 outfit Strasbourg, having previously managed Hull City.
An impressive young coach, but in at the deep end at a club which is not known for patience with managers.
Rosenior has made it clear he hopes to be given the same kind of time Arteta has been afforded at Arsenal, with the Spaniard in charge at the Emirates since 2019.
The Englishman is also keen to prove his critics wrong as he takes on a really top job for the first time, having moved to Chelsea from a fellow BlueCo club.
Arteta says that was never his mindset at Arsenal, despite that huge role being his first job in management.
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‘My motivation was to help the club and transform the football club, that was it, not to prove people wrong,’ he said. ‘That, in my case, wasn’t a motivation.
‘Obviously they know him really well because they have worked together with him for a few years now so they made that decision based, for sure, on his capacity and because they believe that he deserves and is the best person to lead that project.’
Speaking of the ambition and qualities he brings to his new role, Rosenior said: ‘I’m not arrogant. I’m good at what I do. In every job that I’ve worked, whether it was as an interim, as an assistant, as a head coach or a manager, whatever you want to call it, relative to the group I’ve worked with, I’ve been successful. I’ve always wanted to be at a club like this.
‘But it’s not about just being here. It’s about being successful. This is the beginning for me. I’m going to give it everything. Nobody can guarantee wins. Nobody can guarantee success. But I’ve worked very hard for a long time to put myself in a position where I can be successful.
‘To win over the fans, I need to win games of football. To win over the fans, they need to see a team that represents them. I was born not far up the road. It’s about hard work.’
He added: ‘The outside noise is just noise. If you focus on the job, your players and staff, and your process, I feel like you can do amazing things.
‘I am not promising it, I am working towards it, but I believe very strongly we can be successful here.’
Arteta says he does not know his new rival well at all, but has heard good reports from people who have worked with the 41-year-old.
‘No, I know people who have worked with him, I know people who have been close to him in his journey, especially in his journey as a coach, and they talk really highly of him,’ he said.
‘So yeah, wish him all the best apart from tomorrow obviously.’
Rosenior’s first game in charge of Chelsea went well, with the Blues winning 5-1 at Charlton in the FA Cup third round.
It is a much bigger test on Wednesday against the Premier League leaders, though, before his first Premier League outing against Brentford on Saturday.
