The Manager of Arsenal Football Club Mikel Arteta who tested positive for the dreaded coronavirus also known as COVID-19 has shared how he felt and what he understood about life after he contracted the virus. The coach who has already recovered from the infection urged people to be more open emotionally and stop hiding their feelings behind social media.
Recall that Mikel Arteta was hired by Arsenal Football Club in December 2019, from Manchester City where he was acting as the assistant coach to Pep Guardiola. He replaced former Arsenal coach Unai Emery who was fired from the club due to poor run of games.
The 38-year-old football coach was one of the first high profile football managers to contract the virus which started in Wuhan, China. Since 12 March 2020, he has been battling with the virus, a fight he successfully won after weeks of self-isolation.
After recovering from the pandemic, the coach told Arsenal football Club official website that since he contracted the deadly virus, he realised how important it is to touch, hug and feel those he truly loves.
The coach who said he has completely recovered from the virus described the pandemic as a virus that has put the world aside and transformed everything that people prioritise in life.
“So we have to take that lesson,” he said. “We cannot just in two or three months’ time – if we are able to get over this quickly – forget about this because it’s so important.”
Speaking further, the manager noted that: “We are in a world here where everything is social media, everything is a WhatsApp text. But how important is touching each other, feeling each other and hugging each other? I miss that with a lot of the people I love. We have to be emotionally more open. We have to tell each other what we are feeling.
“I am a very positive person and I try to take the moment to say OK, what can we take from this?”
“I haven’t had the opportunity to wake up with my kids and dedicate my time and listen to them. We are in the household together and we are really enjoying those moments as well.”
