Mikel Arteta insists he would be quite happy to play out his remaining days at Arsenal following an impressive first season at the club.
Midfielder wants to finish his career at Emirates Stadium
Mikel Arteta insists he would be quite happy to play out his remaining days at Arsenal following an impressive first season at the club.
The 30-year-old signed for Arsene Wenger's side for £10million on deadline day last August from Everton after the sale of Cesc Fabregas to Barcelona and Samir Nasri to Manchester City
And the Spanish midfielder has become an influential figure for the Gunners as the season has developed, scoring five goals and producing some consistent performances.
But Arteta admits he cannot see himself continuing at the highest level beyond his current four-year deal at the Emirates Stadium.
"I am concentrating on enjoying my time in football and don't know for sure when I am going to finish," Arteta told the
London Evening Standard. "If you'd said to me 10 years ago I would have played in four or five different countries, I would have not believed you.
Finish
"I would like to finish at Arsenal because I am happy here and I think they are the type of club that suit my life and personal ambitions.
"When they talk about players who are 30 or 31, you think about the end of their careers but I am feeling fresh and believe the best years are still ahead of me, hopefully.
"In the Spanish mentality, when you talk about being over 30, you are old. In England, they are more respectful. There are players who are 35, 36 and there are goalkeepers who are 40 who still play here and are respected. I prefer to call them experienced players.
"We have a lot of players who are 17 or 18 years of age and when I see players like Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain coming through, I am jealous. I wish I was 18 again."
