Mikel Arteta has lauded the professionalism and training regimen of Arsenal central defender Ben White.
Eyebrows were raised when Arsenal spent £50 million on the 24-year-old former Brighton and Hove Albion stalwart last summer, having only had one season of Premier League experience under his belt.
The Gunners endured a shock opening-day defeat by newly-promoted Brentford and it’s fair to say that White didn’t cover himself in glory, adding to the concern over signing the player.
However, the Emirates Stadium outfit are now pushing for Champions League qualification and White has forged a stunning partnership with Gabriel at the heart of Arsenal’s defence.
Nowadays he is looking every inch a £50 million defender and his performance in the victory at Wolverhampton Wanderers last time around illustrates his importance.
But the Spanish manager is stressing that White’s improvement ‘isn’t a coincidence’, revealing that it’s merely a reflection of the countless hours that he dedicates at London Colney to make himself better.
He said via Arseblog: “It’s the way Ben reacted after that game, He has a big personality and he has courage; to play, to make decisions, to step in front. When he’s not feeling 100 per cent good, he still wants to train every day and he does it like the best. And the same when he wants to compete.
“In the long run, that takes you to a nice place, for sure. I think Ben is where he is today because of everything he’s done in the last few months. To achieve it is not a coincidence. It’s the work that he puts in every single day.”
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