• Premier League

Arteta 'excited' by Arsenal transfer talk

Mikel Arteta joined Arsenal from Everton in 2011 © PA Photos

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Arsenal midfielder Mikel Arteta says "it's about time" the Gunners began to match the Premier League's biggest clubs in the transfer market.

Manager Arsene Wenger is understood to be pursuing Liverpool striker Luis Suarez and Real Madrid's Gonazalo Higuain as part of a summer spending spree, and Arteta believes it will help Arsenal become title contenders once again.

"The club have said they are going to be very ambitious in the market and have got the financial resources to get big players," Arteta is quoted as saying in the Guardian.

"I think it's about time. When you compare us to the other top English clubs and the money they have paid, we are very far apart. The value of this club is the class and what it means is very difficult to match.

"Now, financially, they are very strong so maybe we will be more aggressive in the transfer market. There has never been a tradition at Arsenal to pay crazy, crazy money.

"I am excited. They made it public that they are going to go big and the sort of players they have been linked with makes me happy.

"It creates a good atmosphere and we need to do something because the other teams are doing it, and I think we will.

"I believe we can be contenders again but it also creates a genuine atmosphere for the fans and they need that because we haven't won trophies in the last years. They need something back. I believe in what we have but if we can strengthen a bit, then we are going to make the gap with the other teams much closer. That's what we're looking for."

Arteta also insists there has been a noticeable increase in morale at the club of late, with previous summers being dominated by the departures of Robin van Persie, Alex Song, Cesc Fabregas and Samir Nasri.

"There's a difference [in spirit] when you are trying to sell players and when you are trying to buy," Arteta said. "The difference between those two concepts is very big.

"If we do well [in the transfer market], I think you will see the difference on the pitch. We're not that far away. The fact that we haven't won it [a trophy] for eight years makes it harder mentally to believe but that's what we need to do.

"I was disappointed when Robin left. He was the best player in our team, he made the difference for us. I didn't want him to go but we had to accept that he wanted to move on to a new challenge."

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