Mikel Arteta calls for ‘process to be respected’ in Man City financial case

Mikel Arteta insisted the Premier League remains “100 per cent” the best in the world – despite Manchester City’s guilty verdict casting a huge shadow over the division.

Mikel Arteta insisted the Premier League remains “100 per cent” the best in the world – despite Manchester City’s guilty verdict casting a huge shadow over the division.

Arteta, who served as Pep Guardiola’s assistant for three years, was speaking for the first time since his former employers were found to have breached more than 100 financial regulations by an independent commission.

City have launched an appeal – with current manager Enzo Maresca insisting the under-fire club’s success has not been tainted – and Arteta called for the “process to be respected”.

He added that he did not want to make “any further comments” until the case is “fully resolved”, having spent most of a tense news conference refusing to engage with questions surrounding the case.

The 44-year-old Spaniard joined Arsenal from City in 2019, with his old club accused of breaking the rules between 2009 and 2018.

Asked to respond to the verdict which has rocked the game, Arteta said: “I fully understand the question. But obviously it’s very important that we respect the process, the timelines, and it’s still an ongoing process and that is not resolved because it’s been appealed.

“My position, and I think the club’s position, is not to make any further comments until this is fully resolved.”

Arteta was later probed as to whether the Premier League remains the best in the world. “One hundred per cent,” he said.

Asked if the league had been “damaged” by City’s verdict, Arteta reverted to his stock line. “There is a process that is not resolved,” he said.

“It is ongoing and we can have a much clearer opinion once it’s been resolved. I’m not prepared to make any comments.”

Arteta also elected against revealing if he had spoken to Guardiola since the crushing verdict was released a fortnight ago. “I prefer not to answer those questions,” he said.

Asked to reflect on whether it had “tainted” his memories of his period at the Etihad Stadium, Arteta said: “Again, I understand the question and where they are coming from. There is a lot of noise around it. It is an ongoing process that has not been resolved yet.”

Arsenal are bidding to retain the league and will view City, who have won all five matches so far, as their closest challengers.

Quizzed as to whether the case would hand Arsenal – three points adrift of City – an “advantage” in the title race, he continued: “I don’t know. “That’s something that’s not in our hands.

“What we think about is us, about what we do and what we want to achieve. That’s it. The rest is something that we don’t control, we have never controlled it, and we don’t want to control it.

“That’s the beauty of what we do. At the end a lot of things depend on us and that’s where we want to leave it.”

Arsenal host Leeds at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday bidding to bounce back from their surprise 3-0 defeat against Brighton prior to the international break.

Arteta, who earlier this week signed a new four-year deal, concluded: “The pain is still in the tummy and tomorrow we certainly have to play with that because it (the loss at Brighton) was a lesson for us.”