These days, Mikel Arteta is struggling to get into the Arsenal first team picture. Undoubtedly a talented midfielder on his day, the Spaniard was even better when he first signed for Rangers in 2002. A promising youth player at Barcelona, the Spanish giants elected to sell Arteta to get him more experience playing in Europe. Rangers were perfect, because the club were often in the Champions League. Arteta didn't come cheap, Rangers forked over £5.8 million to secure him in the Summer of '02. There was a buzz when he signed, because fans realised the football hotbed he was coming from, and the wonderful system he had grown up playing under. During his 2 years as a Ger, Mikel Arteta was suitably fantastic, showing remarkable maturity for such a young player. Scoring a penalty which helped secure the Scottish League Title for Rangers in 2003, Arteta instantly became a hero. These days, the thought of Rangers buying a player for close to £6 million from Barcelona is preposterous. The Glasgow club do still have a lot to offer, but developing Barcelona players certainly isn't on that list currently!
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.
