Arteta was shocked by 'damaged' state of Arsenal after Emery's exit

The Arsenal boss has been working hard on rebuilding a broken bond and the club since replacing Emery.

Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal were ‘damaged and hurt badly’ when he replaced Unai Emery last year and was left ‘shocked’ by the club’s broken bond with fans.

The former Gunners captain returned to the Emirates Stadium in December 2019 after Emery’s dismissal. And, despite a lack of experience, the rookie coach delivered by restoring the team into a competitive outfit.

FA Cup and Community Shield glory has already come Arteta’s way, with many fans and former players alike now hopeful of a brighter future.

Recent setbacks in results, however, prove Arsenal are still undergoing a transitional period under the manager.

“You cannot build something new [quickly], when something has been damaged and hurt badly, that you can see a big split between even our own fans and the team,” Arteta told the club’s website.

“When you were in that stadium 10 months ago, I was shocked.

“You have to rebuild that [bond]. In order to do that you have to build some foundations, and afterward start a process. You have to prioritize that process at the start, and where you are going to get to.

“To do that you need some pieces that have to fill in there, and you have to start to create a puzzle and try to manage it because there will be bad moments and you don’t want to break it.

“All the time you have to be very alert because it takes very little to break what you are building.”

Arteta and Arsenal will return to action on Sunday away to Leeds United in the Premier League.