Mikel Arteta reportedly devised an interesting tactic to teach his Arsenal squad important lessons – by hiring pickpockets.
The Spaniard has had a huge influence on the Gunners’ rise to Premier League title challengers over the past two seasons.
Arsenal have finished second behind Manchester City on both occasions and took them to final day in the previous campaign.
It’s clear that work still needs to be done for them to get their hands on the coveted crown, although they do appear to be getting closer.
And to help with that final push towards a first league title in 21 years, Arteta has opted for an unusual method to prepare his team.
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As reported by The Athletic, he hired professional pickpockets in secret for a team dinner.
Their task was to go round the tables of the clueless Arsenal squad in order to take their phones and wallets.
Once the meal had finished, Arteta stood in front of his team and asked them to empty their pockets, with many having items missing.
It is said that the idea behind this was to teach the importance of three valuable aspects – being ready, alert and prepared at all times.
However in the same campaign, he also showed the players a past tweet from Ivan Toney that seemingly mocked them after Brentford beat the Gunners 2-1 on the opening day.
“So today they play in our house, guys there is only one team on that fing pitch – and it’s us!” he cried before they went on to win 2-1.
Arsenal will be desperate to end their over two-decade wait for Premier League title success in the 2024/25 season.
The Gunners drew 1-1 with Bournemouth at the beginning of their pre-season before beating Manchester united 2-1.
Despite losing 2-1 to Liverpool, they sealed a comfortable 4-1 victory at home against Bayer Leverkusen on Wednesday evening.