Imitation the sincerest form of Atleti flattery for Arteta

As Arsenal prepare to face Champions League opposition from Madrid this evening, their manager has been taking a leaf or two out of Diego Simeone's book

- Richard Jolly

Mikel Arteta might have been speaking about his Arsenal team. “The level of organisation is really high,” he said. “It is about how they compete and after how they play.”

It was actually an ode to Atletico Madrid. There will be a 90-minute opportunity to compare them tonight. There is a broader similarity. There are managers who have brought longevity and stability, returning to their former clubs when they were at a low ebb and effecting a transformation. Diego Simeone is a former Atletico player, Arteta an ex-Arsenal captain and each, arguably, owed his appointment in part to that status.

The critical interpretation is that both became nearly men. Arteta has three consecutive finishes as runners-up in the Premier League, though the Gunners are league leaders now and, in the eyes of an increasing number, title favourites.

Simeone reached two Champions League finals, winning neither, though he twice took the LaLiga title. There is an argument, too, that he is the Argentine Arsene Wenger: not in terms of style of play, but with a seemingly never-ending reign, built on annual Champions League qualification, as though third or fourth place represents a title in itself, but with the best years among the first.