Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is excited facing Andoni Iraola's Bournemouth tomorrow.
The Gunners go to Dean Court on Saturday in a game which will see the two former junior teammates reunited.
Arteta said, "We know each other really well. We have played together. We are privileged to be raised there [in the Basque region] and be educated there. That's the beauty of football that now we are both managing in the Premier League.
"He was better technically than everybody else. He was a winger and then as he got older he played full-back. He would be a dream inverted full-back for any manager!
"He was really excited to come and really supportive of the players and staff and coming to the Premier League."
On the Basque region, he added: "It is the passion about football, about the region. They really take care of the academy. They do fantastic work to raise talent and it's not a coincidence a lot of talent comes from that region."