Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta Photo: VCG

If football managers make teams in their own image, then how do you explain Arsenal under Mikel Arteta? 

The rest of football would have you believe that the Spaniard is one of the game's nice guys. 

"He's a nice guy, with work ethic, he has seen what has happened, he has the mentality, that's why he's Arsenal manager," said Pep Guardiola of his former assistant in July 2020.  

That came after Arsenal had beaten Manchester City 2-0 in the FA Cup semifinal on the way to lifting the trophy later in that COVID-19 prolonged season. Guardiola worked alongside Arteta day in, day out at the Etihad, where the former Arsenal and Everton player took training. It's clear some of the players agree with Guardiola.  

"People always ask me about training under Pep, but the things I've learnt from Mikel Arteta!" said Germany and Bayern Munich winger Leroy Sane of the current Arsenal boss of their time together in Manchester in the book, Pep's City: The Making of a Superteam. 

"We get on brilliantly, he's a lovely guy and a great coach. And he's always right. He'll watch me at training and then afterwards he'll tell me what he thinks. He doesn't just suggest something and leave me to get on with it." 

Whether "nice" or "lovely" it seems that Arteta is one of the good guys. Why is that there seems to be no place for such nice guys in his own Arsenal team? 

"He's a really nice guy, we all miss him, but it is what it is," Arsenal defender Ben White said of the absent Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang on Christmas Eve ahead of the Boxing Day game against Norwich City. 

Aubameyang was stripped of the captaincy by Arteta after a disciplinary breach and the Gunners put five past the Canaries without reply in the Gabonese striker's absence. 

The former Borussia Dortmund hitman was missing again when Arteta's side welcomed Guardiola's champions to the Emirates for their first game of the New Year. Arteta was sidelined with COVID-19 so was not present in person but the ­Gunners did at least stay true to one thing that has been a motif of his time at the club.  

Defender Gabriel saw two yellow cards in the space of as many minutes to become the 11th player sent off in the English Premier League since Arteta returned to Arsenal as manager. 

That also brought up the 100-red-card mark for Arsenal in the English Premier League, with the club the first to reach the century since the league rebranded ahead of the 1992-93 season. 

When Arteta took over from Unai Emery in December 2019, Arsenal had 89 red cards and trailed his former club Everton by six.  

During that time Everton have added four more red cards to move to 99 with no one coming close to Arteta's Arsenal for seeing red.  

In fact, Brighton & Hove Albion and Southampton are the second worst ­offenders during Arteta's tenure and they have only seen red seven times each during that time, while Manchester City and Newcastle United have seen six red cards each and both West Ham United and Aston Villa have been handed five red cards apiece. 

The first red card under Arteta was Aubemayang for a tackle on Crystal Palace's Max Meyer in January 2020. Originally a booking, the tackle was rightly called back by VAR and the referee handed Aubameyang his ­marching orders. Arsenal's appeal was rightly dismissed. 

That same month David Luiz saw red against his former club ­Chelsea after being sold short by teammate ­Shkodran Mustafi's undercooked ­backpass. Luiz brought down Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham and was shown a red.  

It was the Brazilian again when Arsenal next saw red. This time it was against Manchester City in June 2020 as football returned from a three-month COVID-19 hiatus.   

Last season, then Arsenal loanee Martin Odegaard claimed that something switched in Luiz when he went on the pitch. 

"He's not a nice guy anymore you know when he's on the field," Odegaard told the Premier League's official YouTube channel. Perhaps Luiz went too far, accounting for three of the 11 reds under Arteta. He has since been allowed to leave for Flamengo. 

Luiz would also be sent off against Wolves last February when Arsenal picked up their eighth and ninth English Premier League red cards under Arteta. Goalkeeper Bernd Leno also saw red that night with the German following Luiz down the tunnel as Arsenal finished with nine men. While Luiz could feel harshly punished as he gave a penalty away, Leno's deliberate handball outside the area left the officials with no choice. 

In between Luiz's second and third red cards, striker Eddie Nketiah was sent off in July 2020 just three minutes after coming on as a sub against Leicester City before Nicolas Pepe picked up the first red card of last season against Leeds United in November 2020. He could have no complaints either as VAR spotted him headbutting Ezgjan Alioski off the ball. 

It was a similar story for Granit Xhaka against Burnley the following month. The Swiss midfielder was dismissed after VAR checked an off the ball clash with Ashley Westwood where Xhaka appeared to raise his hands to the Clarets striker. 

Gabriel - who will go down in history as the man whose sending off against Manchester City brought up 100 English Premier League red cards for Arsenal - had already helped the Gunners close in on the century. The Brazilian was sent off against Southampton in December 2020 for two yellow card offenses, that time they came inside four minutes.  

It really is hard to understand where it is all coming from. As a player Arteta was only sent off once for the Gunners but as their boss it's no more Mr Nice Guy.