Born in the United States and of Spanish and Italian heritage, Arrieta initially began playing soccer in Italy with various clubs in the lower divisions.

His performances in the CONCACAF Champions League provided Puerto Rico with stunning results over regional powerhouses, and helped the club reach the semi-finals of the tournament.

Born in Florida to a Basque-Spanish father and an Italian mother from Salento,[2] Arrieta grew up in Bilbao, Spain and Borgomanero in Italy.

[5] In the club's playoff run, he led the Islanders to the USL 1 Division final only to be defeated by the Vancouver Whitecaps by a score of 2–1.

He helped lead the club back to the playoffs with a third-place finish, and for the second consecutive year he earned an All-League selection.

[11] As a United States citizen he is eligible to the team after residing in the Commonwealth for two years while playing with the Puerto Rico Islanders.

[12] He got his first cap in a 2010 Caribbean Championship qualification stage match against Anguilla on October 2, 2010, and scored his first goal in the same competition against Saint Martin two days later.

Arrieta was the winner of the Italian football reality show Campioni, il Sogno, after which he was granted a trial with Serie A side Internazionale.