Mikel Arteta has admitted that when he played for Glasgow Rangers their rivalry with Old Firm neighbours Celtic ‘surprised’ him, but it was something that he was also ‘very impressed’ by.
Scotland’s two biggest giants – Rangers and Celtic – have been locking horns and trading blows for decades now at the top of the Premiership, with only Aberdeen able to make a very small dent when Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge of the Dons.
As a result, the tense nature of the games at Ibrox and Celtic Park, the titles battles and the atmosphere around Glasgow can swallow you up if you can’t cope with the pressure.
After coming through at his boyhood club at Barcelona, before repping PSG for a small period, Arteta’s first taste of British football was at Rangers.
Well, the now-Arsenal boss was asked about his favourite derby by Jamie Carragher having played in the Merseyside derby, the north London derby, the Old Firm and PSG v Marseille, as he told MNF Special on Sky Sports (21/12/22) at 10:30 pm start.
“Now that I am here, then I have to say the north London derby,” said Arteta. “But one that probably has surprised me or I was really impressed with was the Old Firm derby when I was in Glasgow. That was electric.”
Jamie Carragher asked: “What was it like up in Rangers, it must have been a real culture shock?”
Arteta responded: “First of all, I was quite a good student. I thought my English was pretty good. But when I arrived in Glasgow, then I realised that it was a different language almost.
“I was so lucky. They welcome me so well and in a really special way. It’s special people. I am so grateful. It helped me so much from my transition to playing in the Premier League and we had some very great moments there.”
ONE OF FOOTBALL’S BIGGEST RIVALRIES
From Turkey where Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray trade yearly blows to the Milan derby in Italy and the Old Firm in itself.
Europe has some intense and hard-hitting rivalries, with Rangers and Celtic possibly making a claim that their derby is the greatest of them all.
Given the nature and intense pressure both teams are under, not just to win every game, but win every Old Firm and the title and trophy, then it’s something that tests the mental nature of whoever steps foot into that arena.
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