Mikel Arteta revealed he was thrilled for Arsenal defender Ben White after he was named in England’s World Cup squad for the upcoming tournament in Qatar.
The 24-year-old has found international recognition hard to come by since joining the Gunners shortly after Euro 2020 where he was part of the England squad that reached the semi finals.
White was left out of the squad for last month’s Nations League fixtures which appeared to end his hopes of playing at the World Cup but a spate of injuries, allied to his versatility has convinced Southgate to have a change of heart.
‘I think he was very happy and the rest of the squad were so happy for him,’ said Arteta speaking ahead of Saturday night’s game against Wolves.
‘He deserves it, so I’m delighted for him.
‘All the credit is down to him. If you look at his career and how far he has come in such a short space of time, really only in the last two years.’
Arsenal, meanwhile, will head into the upcoming break at Premier League leaders should they collect all three points at Molineux but Arteta refused to confirm if his team are ahead of schedule in their development despite a fine start to the campaign.
‘It will be great but our focus is to play better every single day,’ said the Arsenal manager.
‘If we do that, then our chances of winning will increase and that’s where our focus is.
‘What we try to achieve is to play better every day and we’re making so many strides.
‘Our consistency level is much better too, whether we can sustain it is dictated day by day.’
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MORE : Sergio Aguero insists Arsenal have strong enough squad to beat Manchester City to Premier League title
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