Mikel Arteta called Andoni Iraola and made prediction on next job as Liverpool closes in
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Andoni Iraola is set to become the next Liverpool manager, and he could strike up a rivalry with one of his oldest friends in soccer – Arsenal boss Mikel ArtetaMikel Arteta tipped Andoni Iraola for a bright future(Image: 2026 Robin Jones - AFC Bournemouth)Mikel Arteta tipped Andoni Iraola for a bright future after the seemingly soon-to-be Liverpool head coach secured the title for his Arsenal side.Bournemouth's 1-1 draw with Manchester City last month confirmed Arsenal as the champion of England ahead of the final weekend of the season, meaning the Gunners did not need to win away to Crystal Palace on the final day of the campaign to end their 22-year wait for a title.The draw between Bournemouth and City sparked celebrations in north London, and a couple of days later, Arteta revealed that he had called Iraola to thank him."I didn't message him, I called him," Arteta said. "I called him yesterday, firstly to congratulate him on the incredible job he has done with Bournemouth."I told him, 'You almost took the Premier League away from us, and now you helped us to win it on the last [week].'"A quick call to say thank you as well and to show my admiration toward him and wish him the best in the next chapter of his career, which I'm sure is going to be very, very successful."Andoni Iraola looks set to take over at Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)Arteta and Iraola, who were born just three months apart, are close friends from childhood, having both been born in Spain's Basque region.The pair were youth-team teammates for Antiguoko, an amateur club in San Sebastian, before going in different directions and reuniting years later when Iraola became Bournemouth's manager in 2023.“We know each other really well,” Arteta previously said of Iraola.“We played together, we had fantastic times together, we played in Antiguoko, it’s a team in San Sebastián that has produced a lot of players over the years.“I think he was better technically than everybody else.
He used to play as a winger when he was younger, and then as he got a little bit older in his career, he played as a full-back."He was an incredible full-back, inverted full-back, and it would have been a dream for any manager to have a player like him.'Really intelligent, really skillful, and I’m very happy that I was able to play with him.“They do fantastic work, and we are privileged to be raised there, to be educated there, and that’s the beauty of football — that 30, 40 years later, we are together in the Premier League both as managers, and I’m really happy for him.”