‘They’re playing really good football’ – Kevin De Bruyne not surprised by how well Arsenal boss is doing

Manchester City star Kevin De Bruyne says he is not surprised to see Mikel Arteta impress as Arsenal coach.

Arteta, of course, worked very closely with De Bruyne during their time together at the Etihad, but the Spaniard’s time in Manchester was cut short as he was offered the chance to manage Arsenal.

Understandably, Arteta jumped at this opportunity, and after a shaky start to his managerial career, things are finally going well for the former midfielder.

Indeed, Arsenal are now top of the league and Arteta is being recognised as the great coach he is.

Many have been taken aback by Arsenal’s marked improvement this year, but De Bruyne says he’s not surprised at all to see Arteta shining at Arsenal.

“You worked a lot with Mikel Arteta, does it surprise you to see the job he’s done at Arsenal?” De Bruyne was asked.

“No, not really, I see a lot of similarities with the way we play, but that’s always been his style. This was a good learning school and we had some great years,” De Bruyne said.

“I saw an evolution from the beginning with Mikel to the three years after he left. In the beginning he was adapting, but now he’s getting more and more into his role. I think it’s nice to see that he got the time from Arsenal because that’s rare. I’m happy that it’s going well. They’re playing really good”

This is the fourth time Arsenal have won eight of their first nine league matches of a season, having previously done so in 2007-08, 2004-05 and 1947-48.

The north London side will be hoping to keep their place at the top of the league by beating Leeds at Elland Road on Sunday.