Nicklas Bendtner

Germany international Shkodran Mustafi has revealed that manager Mikel Arteta has reunited the Arsenal squad since becoming the head coach in December. The north London side were in a disarray when the Spaniard took charge of the club but they have since sorted themselves and are unbeaten in the Premier League since the turn of the year.

Of course, the club are still eight points behind the top four of the Premier League but Mustafi says that Arteta is destined for greatness judging by the initial influence on the team, he told Sky Sports: "He's a little like a professor. He knows exactly where he wants the players to be when on the ball and how to react when losing the ball. It's very special. When I pass I am usually only focused on where to be if we lose the ball but he wants me to contribute offensively too. So we constantly need to make an option for the player on the ball. When you are 28 and you play in different countries with other coaches you think you know everything but then he came in and there are things I've never known before."

The north London outfit have missed out on the Champions League for three seasons on the bounce and that could be the fate during the current campaign. They built up momentum before the coronavirus shutdown with three league wins on the bounce and it remains to be seen whether they can sustain the form when the campaign resumes.

Even if the club fail to make the Champions League, there are plenty of positives to carry forward from the opening months under Arteta, who has demanded a better workrate from the team with genuine success. The Capital outfit still have to face Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League and those games could determine their European status next term.