Arteta shrugs off Cesc comparisons

Mikel Arteta has urged Arsenal fans not to compare him to former club captain and fellow Spaniard Cesc Fabregas.

Arteta arrived at the Emirates Stadium from Everton in August 2011, following the sale of Fabregas to Barcelona and Samir Nasri to Manchester City.

The former Rangers and Real Sociedad player has made 34 appearances in all competitions during his first season at Arsenal, scoring five goals.

Like Fabregas, Arteta is a graduate of Barca’s famed youth academy, but the older man has asked for time before being judged against his predecessor’s high standards.

Arteta told The Evening Standard: “Cesc wasn’t the same player in his first season as in his last, so how can anyone expect me to be the Cesc Fabregas of last season in my first?

“I knew because everybody was saying to me, ‘Mikel, you are going to go to Arsenal and it’s going to be really tough for you because you are going to be under so much pressure. Cesc is leaving, Nasri is leaving, the team are not doing well.’

“But I said, ‘I don’t care, I want to go to Arsenal. Arsenal are the club I have to play for.’

“I will show that I am no Fabregas, I am no Nasri, I am myself.

“I will try my best for the team. If people want to compare me then it is up to them but I know that if I do that, I am making a mistake on the first day. I didn’t want to waste any time.

While Arteta does not wish to be directly compared to Fabregas, he did seek out his countryman for advice on Arsenal prior to signing for the north London club.

“I have talked to Cesc a few times,” he said.

“I rang him when I was going to join because I wanted to know things.

“When you have been in football in different places, there are certain things inside the club you have to know before agreeing to move there. That’s what I asked him about and he was very helpful.”