How Arteta took Arsenal to next level: Unwavering self-belief & responsibility

Intense. A control freak. Powerful. Unapologetic. A leader. Emotional. A genius. Mikel Arteta is the man driving Arsenal's irresistible resurgence.

There were signs of what was to come during his playing career at the Emirates. 'He was unbelievably professional to the point where he was compulsive,' one of Arteta's former Arsenal team-mates tells Mail Sport.

'His preparation for every training session, let alone match, was meticulous. If anyone was going to become a manager, it was Mikel.'

Those obsessive traits are said to have got worse - or better, depending on how you look at it - since he embarked on a career in management.

Indeed, in the era of the head coach, Arteta is a throwback - a manager in the traditional sense. His fingerprints are all over this club, much like a certain Arsene Wenger.

To illustrate his all-encompassing reach, Arteta has been involved in discussions over how to improve the atmosphere at the Emirates and has been central to talks over the layout of the club's London Colney HQ.

Arteta has his own ideas on how the club should operate and his engagement on a range of matters significantly outweighs that of his rivals, who are far happier to delegate. But that's Arteta. All or nothing.

Arteta being Arteta, he would refuse to accept the lion's share of credit for shaping the modern Arsenal. And indeed the Spaniard has been ably assisted by the Kroenkes, sporting director Edu and executive team Richard Garlick, Tim Lewis and Vinai Venkatesham. But Arteta is the puppet master, with the kind of influence enjoyed by only a handful of managers across Europe. And on Tuesday night, Arteta and his team enjoyed a watershed moment on a night bursting with unbridled joy.

The shootout win over Porto represented