Mikel Arteta’s unorthodox training methods reached a new level on Monday, as Arsenal players were seen completing a host of bizarre drills.
During his tenure as Arsenal manager, Arteta has been known to implement unique or unorthodox strategies in an effort to get the best out of his players, having once hired pickpockets to promote situational awareness.
And now, following back-to-back defeats to Manchester City and Southampton – in the Carabao Cup final and FA Cup quarter-final respectively – which saw dreams of an unprecedented quadruple crushed, the Spaniard appears to have shaken things up.
The Gunners squad could be seen doing a whole host of new and unique group training drills at the Sobha Realty Training Centre, in London Colney, on Easter Monday.
Clips shown on Sky Sports displayed players in groups of four holding a ball between all of their heads while trying to move across the pitch.
They then raced back to complete another drill in which the players hold pens between each other’s fingertips, during which they try to pass the ball between them and move across the grass.
Arsenal players could be seen training with pens between their fingers on Monday
The drills, while odd, could be perceived as a test of concentration. The players are having to focus on multiple things at once, while still getting the job done.
However, football fans have been quick to mock Arteta’s latest unconventional exercise invention, with one labelling it his newest ‘gimmick’.
One social media user responded to the clip, which has gone viral on X, saying: ‘And you want to win the Champions League with this kind of training.’
Another added: ‘This training will still result in disaster.’
Arteta is on a mission to guide Arsenal to their first Premier League title in 22 years – having seen his side fail in both domestic competitions in the past month – and is evidently doing everything, including the weird and wacky, to achieve that goal.
The Spaniard has previously used other unorthodox methods, which included hiring professional pickpockets to steal from his own players at a team dinner to teach them a lesson in being alert at all times.
He has also infamously played ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ on loudspeakers during a training session in an attempt to familiarise his players with the intimidating atmosphere at Liverpool’s Anfield stadium before an away game there.
Arsenal players were also subjected to a rallying team talk where Arteta pulled out a lightbulb and waved it around the dressing room to symbolise how he wanted his team to play with ‘energy’ and ‘electricity’.
And as recently as last September, Arteta revealed plans to enlist the help of RAF fighter pilots to improve communication.
Speaking at an event alongside his friend and legendary basketball coach Steve Kerr, the Arsenal manager was asked about leadership.
He explained: ‘So, the British fighter planes, for example. I will get in touch with those guys, how they communicate, because that is life or death.
The Gunners were knocked out of the FA Cup by Southampton at St Mary’s on Saturday
Mikel Arteta has clearly shaken things up by bringing in yet more unorthodox exercises, which have been mocked by fans
‘I’m sure they don’t use 20 phrases or 20 words if there is one word. Don’t say, “Nah, the wind is coming this way, now you have to turn left”, because boom, dead. So, it will be one word.’
The Premier League leaders were beaten 2-1 by Championship side Southampton on Saturday night, with Shea Charles netting a dramatic winner five minutes from time to secure a spot in the FA Cup semi-finals against the odds.
The successive losses to Saints and City are the first real signs that the pressure is getting to this Arsenal side this season, as they hunt down their first trophy in six years.
While the defeat to Southampton saw their quadruple hopes halved, they remain comfortably in the box seat for the Premier League title – sitting nine points clear of second-placed City – and they are in the last eight of the Champions League.
