Mikel Arteta has revealed that the brief backlash from a handful of Arsenal fans to Noni Madueke’s arrival from Chelsea only strengthened the club’s resolve to make the transfer work, and ultimately served as motivation for the winger himself.
If only it might motivate journalists to shut up about it!
A small but vocal and artificially inflated online campaign emerged in the summer after Arsenal agreed a £48.5 million deal for the 23 year old, with a petition opposing the move signed by several thousand supporters and the hashtag #Notomadueke gaining traction on social media. Within weeks, the same player was being celebrated for decisive contributions before his momentum was halted by a knee injury suffered in the 1 to 1 draw with Manchester City in September.
Madueke returned after nine weeks on the sidelines in last weekend’s 4-1 north London derby win over Tottenham, and followed that with his first Arsenal goal in the midweek Champions League victory over Bayern Munich at the Emirates. He is now in contention to face his former club Chelsea this weekend.
Ahead of the fixture, Arteta said: “If anything, it (the social media campaign) gave me more conviction and more will to help him and do everything we possibly could to make this relationship work and to prepare everything around him in the best possible way.
“I think that (campaign) lasted a short period of time and immediately we had the complete opposite reaction which I think he valued, respected and it was like fuel to him. It did not affect him (negatively).”.
The winger insists the online noise that accompanied his move barely registered, and that the response inside the stadium has quickly defined his Arsenal experience.
“To be honest, I just kind of take all that stuff in my stride,” he said. “It is normal, you are in the public eye, people can say whatever they want about you.
“I am not really worried about all of that. It is in the distant past.”
He pointed to the atmosphere against Tottenham as evidence of how quickly the mood has shifted.
“Like the last game versus Tottenham, it was incredible,” he said. “I play on the side of the pitch, I can feel the fans, I can hear them. When they are that positive about me it gives me a massive boost.
“Honestly, I am made up about it.”
Madueke now returns to Stamford Bridge for the first time since leaving Chelsea, playing down the personal significance of the occasion.
“For me, it is another game, honestly. The fixture is not about me,” he said. “The fixture is about Arsenal getting another three points in the league and being closer to our objective.
“That is honestly how I think about it.
“It might be a little bit hostile, it might not be, but I am a professional footballer. I have played in loads of atmospheres.
“I don’t know if anything will faze me, I will just be focused on the task ahead.
“That is the most important thing.
“It is about our team and trying to win the game. It’s as simple as that.”