Arteta on Max Dowman Arteta said during the pre-match presser ahead of the Brighton clash: We look at his passport every day. We watch in training, and you have to play him; otherwise, I'm blind. He's coped really well. It's what we want (Dowman's long-term future at the club) and what he wants. The feeling I have is that he loves it here. Huge Arsenal supporter and his family are happy.
When any proposal comes, the first question has to be whether to stay at la Real, he said. And it wasn't the right moment [to go]. I stayed and it was a hard season but I learned a lot. I wanted to step forward, take that weight after others went. But I've always tried to choose the right time and I'm happy with how it happened in the end.
The club didn't want to let me go and it took a long time for them to agree to the transfer. I was valued there; no one wanted to get rid of me. Arteta didn't want me to leave for Portugal either, so I never felt unwanted. The decision to leave was entirely mine. I wanted to play, but with Gabriel and Saliba ahead of me, the chances were small.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has heaped praise onto new signing Piero Hincapie as he explained why the Gunners brought him in this summer. The Ecuador international impressed at former club Bayer Leverkusen, and he's now the latest name in through the door at the Emirates Stadium. Hincapie looks like a fine addition to add even more quality strength in depth to this Arsenal squad, as he can fill in at centre-back or left-back.
