COULD Mikel Arteta help Manchester City beat Arsenal and then go and be the Gunners permanent manager?
The Spaniard will assisting Pep Guardiola as an opponent at Emirates Stadium on Sunday, having been a loved figure for the fans in red and white in the past.
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Yet, it may not be long before he is in the home dugout as Arteta becomes the bookies’ new favourite to take over at Arsenal.
He is priced at 6/4 and would return to the club he retired from in 2016, having previously been interviewed for the top job when Arsene Wenger stepped down, only to lose out to Unai Emery.
Arteta rises above Ancelotti, who has been on the cusp of returning to the Premier League since the Italian was sacked by Napoli last week.
The former Chelsea, AC Milan and Real Madrid boss is currently 3/1, according to Ladbrokes, to be in charge of Arsenal at the start of next season – but has reportedly been in discussions with Everton.
Marcelino is the next candidate on the list after recent reports linking him to the job, with the former Valencia boss sharing the third-favourite spot with Patrick Vieira on 8/1.
The Gunners legend is currently managing at Nice, but is the top target for Arsenal technical director and former teammate Edu.
After the Spaniard and Frenchman are six managers all on 10/1 for the job, including current interim boss Freddie Ljungberg.
The Swede – another former Arsenal star – has struggled since taking over at the Emirates, with just one win in four matches ahead of a tough clash against Man City.
Bournemouth coach Eddie Howe also makes the list with the long-serving Cherries boss enjoying wins over Man Utd and Chelsea this season.
Yet, one that would send North London into meltdown is Mauricio Pochettino, with the former Tottenham manager getting sacked last month and could now be moving to Spurs’ arch-rivals.
The other trio on 10/1 including Juventus’ old gaffer Massimiliano Allegri, Niko Kovac – who was sacked by Bayern Munich earlier this season – and ex-Chelsea, Liverpool and Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez.
Freddie Ljungberg, speaks about his side’s performance against West Ham after Arsenal cruise to their first win under the Swede
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
