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Arteta: We realise how much we need each other now

28 Mar 2020
Arsenal FC v West Ham United - Premier League

After recovering from COVID-19, Arsenal head coach reflects on what matters most during period of social distancing

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With the coronavirus pandemic forcing people to stay at home, Mikel Arteta says these are the times when we appreciate the importance of our loved ones.

The Arsenal head coach, who has now fully recovered after testing positive for COVID-19, says the slowing-down of modern life is teaching people a valuable lesson.

"I think we are all realising how much we need each other," Arteta told the club's official website. "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 a lot with a lot of people that I love. I cannot do it now and I am sure that will transform a little bit of how people behave with their close ones, with the people that they love and that they care about."

Arteta's message to fans

In the interview Arteta reveals what happened when he learnt he had the virus on the eve of the Premier League match with Manchester City, and shares how the team are coping with the current lockdown.

He hopes the virus will allow people to take stock of the world and change, for the better, how they behave, especially with loved ones.

"We have to be emotionally more open," he said. "We have to tell each other what we are feeling, because straightaway you know.

"It's one virus that is putting the world aside and it's transforming everything that we prioritise in life. So we have to take that lesson.

"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."

See: Arteta: The effect COVID-19 had on me

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