Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta admits he's developed a special bond with one of his players

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has developed a strong admiration for one of his own players as the Gunners prepare to face Wolves in their first Premier League match of the 2024-25 season.

The north Londoners are looking to land their first top-flight trophy in 20 years after pushing Manchester City all the way for the last two successive campaigns.

Arsenal have strengthened their squad this summer, bringing in Riccardo Calafiori from Bologna, while they’ve made David Raya’s loan permanent as they prepare for their first top-flight fixture against Gary O’Neil’s side on Saturday.

Calafiori moved to the Emirates in a deal worth £42m and Arteta has very much fallen head over heels for the 22-year-old, who can play centre-back or left-back.

‘I fell in love with him,’ Arteta told . ‘I watched him a year ago. I saw something different – an aura, a charisma, a presence that was not only related to his skill.

‘We started to follow him and we saw a player – he was 21 at the time – that was doing things and reacting to things in a way a 21-year-old normally doesn’t.

‘He had a really difficult past as well, a difficult knee injury, the way he reacted to that.

‘When I met him, I said, ‘For sure’ – he was so convinced, he only wanted to come to Arsenal, he only wanted to play for us, so I’m really happy to have him!’

Quizzed about what his Arsenal side need to do to win the Premier League this season, Arteta added: ‘Every year, it’s going to be harder.

‘So we have to be better and set new standards, if we do that, we are going to give ourselves a good chance.’

A Premier League Supercomputer has predicted who’ll win the 2024-25 title as well as the full order for the top four. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it is backing Pep Guardiola’s side to once again get their hands on the trophy.

City side have been utterly dominant in recent seasons, winning six of the last seven Premier League titles. Only Liverpool could stop them in 2020.

The Supercomputer believes Arsenal will brutally finish as the Premier League runners-up for the third season in a row. It is predicting a third-placed finish for Liverpool with Erik ten Hag guiding Manchester United back into the top four.