Of all the possible reasons to delay Mathieu Flamini from a meeting to talk about his new lease of life at Arsenal, the explanation was highly unexpected. Surely his extra-curricular session of choice at the training ground was something like taekwondo or triathalon? Actually, no. It was yoga. Arsenal's scampering, edgy, defensive midfielder does not give the impression that life should be taken with slow, stretched, moments of contemplation. The image that fits better is of a man who might leap out of bed barking instructions and pointing before he has even rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

If it is easy to pigeonhole Flamini, that is not a problem with the man himself. A player who has added steel to the silk in Arsenal's game prides himself on the virtues he embodies. His manager, Arsène Wenger, refers to it as the "dark" work. Flamini does not take that as a slight. If anything, he is proud that his ability to handle the darkness gives his team-mates the platform to paint with light and colour.

When Eric Cantona famously described Didier Deschamps as a water-carrier, it was said with disdain. Flamini carries water with indefatigable relish.

"We have a lot of qualities, a lot of technical players, and they need to be protected," he insists. "Defensive work is maybe a bit more difficult to see than when you score or make an assist. But it's very important as part of the balance of the team. I am a defensive midfielder, trying to find the best balance in the team between the defence and attack. Winning games is a quality of effort. It's teamwork." The value he brings in that regard has been highly noticeable as Arsenal have set the pace in both the Premier League and their Champions League group.

His other great contribution since returning to his former club as an almost accidental free transfer is in leadership. Always cajoling, instructing, alerting, Flamini is a big believer in communication on the pitch as a way of simultaneously steering strategy and spirit. He is so busy on the pitch, although his choice of word is "bossy". Again, what some perceive as negative he is happy to embrace. "It is inside of me. I am not trying to be bossy, just to be myself, and of course to help my partners on the pitch. When you start helping each other, fighting for each other, this helps you to win games."

On the subject of what it takes to win football matches, Flamini talks as he plays – with serious and relentless intent. The only time he pauses during the scurrying conversation is to consider the wisdom of confessing his boyhood footballing hero. " Maybe I shouldn't say that but …" he smiles wryly, "it was Roy Keane. For me he is a legend. Someone you want to respect." It figures.

In the end, Flamini's resolve is what persuaded Wenger to take his old charge back when, frankly, the manager was reticent. Perhaps there was a little residual discomfort about how Flamini left in the first place, back in 2008. The player had an excellent final season of his contract, took little interest in an extension, and left on a Bosman free for Milan.

"I had hesitations about it because he left us before and you always want to send a signal that the players who leave do not necessarily come back," Wenger explained. Watching Flamini training like a dervish made him think again. "I had a chat with him and told him I hadn't made up my mind. His resolute attitude to join us convinced me. He had other proposals and I said: 'If you want to go somewhere else you can because I am not ready yet.'

"But he waited. Once he decided to do that, you think there is something special there."

Flamini is thrilled. "I really have the sensation I never left," he says. "It was a great opportunity to come back. I had some unfinished business. I had four great years, amazing memories, but I have some regrets. I am talking obviously about the [2006 Champions League] final in Paris which we lost, and the 2007-08 run, where we were top of the league and collapsed in the end. All these things stay in the back of your head. When you are a competitor you wake up in the morning and you want to win. You want to win every game. You want to win titles. That's what you fight for. So I come back with a lot of motivation."

There is an interesting comparison between the current team, on their high-flying roll, and the class of 2007-08, who were leading the Premier League towards the run-in, having built their challenge on a sequence of 12 consecutive wins. What happened next has stuck in Flamini's mind since.

"I understand why everyone remembers that well," he muses. "We were top of the league until spring and if I remember we collapsed at Birmingham. We were winning 2-1, there was the big injury of Eduardo and then it ended in a draw." They could not cope with that traumatic game and all their good work unravelled. He hopes that he can lend his experience at points of adversity that he expects to come up during this campaign.

"The quality is present in our team today and we want to prove it until the end. What will make the difference is the solidarity. We have to keep the spirit until the end. Up to now everything is going well but we will face a difficult period. Solidarity and team spirit is more important then than now. It is very difficult to find, and very difficult to keep, so we have to work very hard on that because for me that is what makes the difference."

His impact on that solidarity and spirit was evident from the moment he jigged on the sidelines, ready to enter the fray of the north London derby in his second Arsenal debut. "I was a bit nervous," he says. "My first game after I left and I was hoping the fans would be on my side." The Emirates crowd were able to play Flamini bingo and soon had a full house. Giving instructions? Tick. Gesticulating? Tick. Foul? Tick. Booking? Bingo.

Although his re-signing on a free was seen by some as symbolic of Arsenal's troubles in the transfer market, becoming re-acquainted with traits like this, of course they were happy to see him. He addressed problems that had lingered for some time.

Although his time in Milan was mixed, he retains affection for a spell which brought him a scudetto and many lessons. "Tactically, it is an amazing school. The championship is not that easy. So coming back here maybe it is a bit easier for me to understand the game," he says.

Flamini gives Wenger a more energetic and aggressive alternative to Mikel Arteta in the midfield anchor role. More interestingly, he can also be a companion for Arteta – as was the case so effectively against Napoli in the Champions League in a more strategic set-up which should be more effective in Europe and on tough away assignments.

Either way, Flamini just feels elated to be involved. "Sometimes it is difficult to realise how lucky we are," he says, describing his vocation as "a beauty". When Mesut Özil was signed shortly after Flamini's return, the contrasts were striking. One cost £42m, the other nothing. One is a artist, the other a workman. But the unsung hero has in his own way been as transforming as the superstar.