David Moyes names Rangers learning curve that has helped turn Premier League boss into managerial powerhouse
The pair worked together at Everton but one of them had an upbringing at Rangers.
David Moyes says Rangers have helped lay some of the groundwork for one Premier League manager’s rise into elite company.
The Everton boss is one of the game’s most experienced campaigners. His playing career in Scotland had him feature for the likes of Celtic and Dunfermline Athletic but it’s management where Moyes is most renowned, particularly in England, after stints at Everton, Manchester United, Sunderland and West Ham United.
He’s now back in the Everton hotseat for a second time and lost 1-0 to Premier League leaders Arsenal at the weekend, who are managed by a man he used to manage in Merseyside, Mikel Arteta. The Gunners head coach has carved himself into one of the division’s powerhouse coaches and is after the title this term, and he is well known to Rangers fans, having featured at Ibrox between 2002-2004 before joining Everton in 2005. His time at the likes of Rangers and Everton are what Moyes feels have helped turn the ex-Ibrox man into a top boss.
David Moyes on Mikel Arteta
He said pre-match: “Mikel was clever in his football thinking [as a player]. He knew how he wanted to play as well. He had a really good upbringing if you look at the clubs where he started, periods at PSG, periods at Barcelona, Real Sociedad. He had a real chance before he came and went to Glasgow Rangers and then came here [to Everton].
“He’d actually been around and seen a lot of clubs, a lot of really good clubs, with good setups. He was a wee bit of a moaner at times, Mikel. And that sometimes is a good sign as well. He wanted things to be done right, wanted it to be done good, wanted the team to play better. But he was a good player for us (Everton). Great captain, great player. Great signing, really, at that time.”
Arteta has eyes on the biggest prize in England but talk of it isn’t bothering him after racking up another win. The former Rangers midfielder said: "The only thing we can control is our own performance and results and we know how long it's going to be and how tough is this league. That's it. Enjoy every day. Do your best and see what we're going to get."
Mikel Arteta on trying to win the Premier League
“The [winning] margin should have been bigger, but that is what we have to do -- learn, but keep winning. We knew it would be a really tough match. In the second half we should have scored a second or third goal to be more relaxed. We didn't do that and against this type of team it can be tense.
"Every team brings different situations. They used the keeper to play long balls and the game becomes more chaotic and stretched and you have to dominate that game and we managed to do it. You need to enjoy the process of winning and that's going to be hard moments, difficult moments, great moments.
"That's all part of that intention and how close we are winning and that's why we have to enjoy and take it game by game."