Mikel Arteta knew within ’10 seconds’ that Arsenal should sign Raheem Sterling with Chelsea loanee in line for Gunners debut in north London derby

Sterling was outcast from the Chelsea squad upon the takeover of Enzo Maresca this summer, and as such, the 29-year-old winger had been told to leave the club or spend his time in exile. While a number of clubs were gunning for the former Manchester City star, it was the Gunners who struck a loan deal in the dying embers of the transfer window last month. Arteta has revealed it only took him ’10 seconds’ to decide whether he wanted the winger to join his side.

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  WHAT ARTETA SAID

  When asked how much Sterling still has changed since their time together at City, Arteta said: “A lot, obviously in his personal life a lot of things have changed since the moment we worked together.

  “I was really surprised. The first call I had with him, I knew straight away in 10 seconds, we have to bring him here because he really wanted it. That was my only question mark, where is he at, what stage is he at in his career? After 10 seconds, I knew already before the next question, we need him here.”

• • THE BIGGER PICTURE

    Arteta also praised Sterling’s desire and talked about how impressive the 29-year-old has been at training over the last two weeks. The Spaniard said: What I see is hunger. He’s a player that wants to play every minute of every game. When that’s not the case, he’s not happy. He wants to play every single day and I see that.

    “His commitment and the level of energy that he’s bringing to the team is a big boost. You can feel it walking through the door. We are better with him. He’s gonna make us better.

    “He has this ability [to score goals] and the credit to that is him and the players he’s got around him certainly. He has that intuition and that will to do that. I’m sure it’s going to help the team.”

  • WHAT NEXT FOR STERLING?

    Arteta also revealed that Sterling is ready to make his debut this weekend when Arsenal take on Tottenham in the north London derby on Sunday.

    Arteta said when asked about Sterling starting: “He looks great. He’s got a lot of energy, and a smile on his face and he’s at it. He wants to prove a point and when someone’s got that in his belly you sense it straight away. Obviously, I don’t need to know anything else about his quality and what he can bring to the team.”