Nearly five years after being one of Mikel Arteta's very first signings for Arsenal, Cedric Soares has been without a club for seven months.
The right-back joined the Gunners on loan from Southampton in January 2020 before the transfer was made permanent that summer.
The first six months of his career in north London were marred by injuries as he made just five league appearances in a season that saw Arsenal go on to win the FA Cup – the only silverware Arteta has won in his managerial career to date.
Despite making just 64 appearances in his entire Arsenal career, the former Portugal international was a leader in an extremely young dressing room led by a young manager.
As he remained an influential figure behind the scenes, the signings of Ben White and Takehiro Tomiyasu severely reduced his minutes on the pitch as Arsenal continually improved under Arteta.
He eventually left the club last summer when his contract expired, but has yet to join another club. The German-born defender, still just 33 years old, admits he has no desire to hang up his boots but revealed clubs had doubts about his ability to perform given his lack of action during his four-year period in North London.
“My idea is obviously to try to complete the badges as I play, but my main goal is still to play,” he told The Athletic. “I think it's too early to retire now. I'm fit and thank God I haven't had any serious injuries. If you haven't played, the other teams have doubts. 'How is he? Is he playing well? Why didn't he play?' “He's not playing?”
“I wanted to find a good project right away. I had some things in the beginning of the market that I didn't take and then I had some things that I wasn't really excited about. Now that I've had this break, I want to start as as quickly as possible.”
After seeing Arteta's growth as a coach, Carlo stated that the ex-Gunners captain has improved his man-management skills, which has allowed for a more personal kinship with his players.
“Mikel was also young when he joined the club,” said Carlo. “He had his idea, but he had to teach a completely new team about that idea. I think over time he improved in the way he communicated the idea and also gained more experience and adapted the game. is not exactly the same idea.” like five years ago.
“Over time he also improved man management. I think he has a much closer relationship with the players now. He picked most of them. That helps because he believes in the players more and I think the players feel, so they give it back.”