Mikel Arteta dealt blow as trusted Arsenal ally poached for top job in Serie A

Daily Mirror

3 hours ago

Mikel Arteta could see his Arsenal assistant Carlos Cuesta leave for pastures new with Parma ready to offer him their top job as the young coach prepares to step out on his own
Italian giants Parma have lined up Arsenal No 2 Carlos Cuesta as their next boss. That would be a big blow to Mikel Arteta to lose his 29-year-old assistant ahead of next season.
Parma have asked for formal permission to enter negotiations to complete a move for the highly-rated coach, but Arsenal have yet to respond to the latest developments. The Serie A side sacked head coach Fabio Pecchia back in February, replacing him with Christian Chivu.
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The Romanian has now left to take up the job at Inter Milan and that has left the club with another vacancy to fill. Cuesta is not yet 30 but has forged an impressive reputation and joined Arteta's coaching staff just months after he was appointed.
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The Spaniard's possible departure would be a blow to Arsenal's preparations for the new season given how long Cuesta has been by Arteta's side. The Gunners boss has placed huge trust in his lieutenants.
This isn't the first time Cuesta has been sounded out for a job and back in 2024 he was heavily linked with a move to Norwich and Arteta confessed that he would not stand in a coach's way if they sought to step out on their own and pursue an opportunity.
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He said at the time: "If that's the will? You cannot do that. I wouldn't, no. With the staff as well, everybody need to feel there is a path, there is a development plan for everyone. People don't want to do the same thing for three, four, five years. It is a way to incentivise and inspire other people and then to explore because you don't really know the limit of a person unless you expose him to certain things.
"I think curiosity is a really important quality that we have within our young staff and that drives the rest. We all need opportunities. I got the opportunity when I didn't have any experience in coaching, first at Man City and here. I'm very grateful for that.
"It is my responsibility to give, when you see talent, when you see that level of passion and enthusiasm to give them the chance as well to show what they can deliver."
Arteta himself made the decision to step away from being Pep Guardiola's assistant at Manchester City to become the Arsenal manager back in 2019. He, like Cuesta, had never been in the top job before but his time as a No 2 served him well as he's gone on to cut it in the main job.