When Chelsea line up against Arsenal in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon, the two men in the respective dug-outs will know each other very well.

Blues head coach Mauricio Pochettino's friendship with Gunners boss Mikel Arteta dates back over 20 years to their playing careers, when they both moved to France to join Paris Saint-Germain in January 2001, and the two have remained close ever since.

That means there will be plenty of respect on the touchline at Stamford Bridge tomorrow, but according to Pochettino there will be no dampening of either manager's desire to win.

'When you connect with a person like him, we share the values and we share the passion of football,' said Mauricio. 'He has been part of my family from day one when he arrived in Paris. We arrived together, we spent time together, with our families also. First of all we were in the same hotel and then after we lived very close. It was an amazing history.

‘It’s going to be really nice because my love for him is there. He’s more than a friend, he’s family, and in that way it’s going to be strange. But all coaches are very competitive and when you go to play, also if he is part of my family, we want to win and to destroy the opponent. So it’s going to be strange but I think at some point I will feel proud to see him and compete with him.'

Arteta has done an impressive job so far at Arsenal, guiding them to a second-place finish in the Premier League last season, their highest at the end of a campaign since his last playing for the club, in 2015/16. However, Pochettino insists he always knew what the Spaniard would be capable of as a manager.

'He’s not surprised me what he’s doing because he was already a coach when I knew him when he was 18. Already he was a coach and trust me he was really good, the judgement and how he sees football. He’s great, still really young and improving day by day.

'When you are coaching at Arsenal and you are showing what the team is showing it is because he’s one of the best. Young or not young, he’s showing that he’s one of the best coaches in the world today.

'It’s not only about being good with tactics and football knowledge. It’s about how you manage people, how you deal with the media, how you deal with the owners, how you deal with the players. It’s not only about being clever in the way that you prepare the games, but of course he’s one of the best.'

All of that means our head coach is well aware of the challenge which he and his Chelsea side face when we host Arsenal at the Bridge tomorrow, with the Gunners undefeated in the Premier League this season and sitting second in the table, only behind leaders Tottenham on goals scored. It is a challenge he is relishing, though.

'We are thinking to win tomorrow, with respect to Arsenal, which is a great team. It’s going to be tough because they are doing a great job. A very good squad, very good team, they are playing so well.

'They are a contender to win everything, not only the Premier League but the Champions League, and I think they are doing a fantastic job and it’s going to be tough. But also we are confident that we can give our best and do a very good game.

'I prefer the tough fixtures. It’s easier to prepare for this type of game because the players are motivated, we are so motivated, and the fans are going to help us. No-one assumes Chelsea are going to win 3-0 tomorrow.

'What people think is it’s going to be tough and I enjoy when I compete in this type of atmosphere, and you compete against a team like Arsenal that is doing fantastic. I enjoy these games for sure.'