Mikel Arteta is adamant he still has the full backing of everyone at Arsenal and says stability is now key to turning the club’s fortunes around.
A run of just one win in his last nine Premier League games has seen the pressure increased on Arteta, who takes his struggling side to Everton on Saturday sitting 15th in the table.
But despite Arsenal’s current form, club bosses Vinai Venkatesham and Edu have both publicly come out in support of Arteta in the past week, reaffirming their belief that he is the right man for the job.
And ahead of this weekend trip to Goodison, Arteta says he appreciates that support and insists he feels the same level of backing from everyone else at the club.
“I said it from the start, that I felt really supported by the owners, by the board, by the technical director and then by everybody that is at the club,” said the Spaniard.
“Because at the end of the day it is a feeling that I feel with the staff, with the coaches, with the players - which is the most important one.
“What chemistry do you have with them? What understanding do you have? Do they follow you? Do they believe in what you are trying to do? And I always have to say 'thank you', because I haven’t seen anything that goes against what we are trying to do.”
Arteta added: “After a big shake-up, we need to find stability and in order to do that we need time.
“We all knew, at least the people that made the decision with me to start this new project, that this wasn’t a quick fix and it was going to take time.
“And when you are shaking things up, things can take a while.”
Saturday’s game at Everton will mark Arteta’s first year in charge of Arsenal.
Despite the huge challenges of working through a global pandemic, there were clear signs of progress when the FA Cup and Community Shield were won in August with victories against Chelsea and Liverpool.
The recent run of poor form in the Premier League has certainly taken the gloss off those successes at Wembley, but Arteta is convinced that significant progress has still been made.
“I think it has been one of the most challenging years of the club’s history for many, many different reasons,” he said.
“We have made a lot of progress and we have implemented a lot of positive things that have worked really, really well. We have gone through structural changes all across the club, that obviously has shaken the club big time.
“I would say the highlights of this year are the two trophies that we have won together. And the most disappointing thing is that we haven’t had our fans with us to take us through this difficult moment.
“I think it could have been a really, really positive year - but the recent form in the Premier League is taking the gloss off what we have done in a calendar year.
“But we have to accept that the Premier League form, in recent weeks, has not been good enough for this football club.”