Mikel Arteta admits ‘overloading’ Arsenal stars but his changes are crucial to title dream

Mikel Arteta has opened up on the mistakes he made early in his Arsenal tenure and how those learnings are now taking his team to their ultimate goal

Mikel Arteta has become, probably, the most scrutinised manager of the last six seasons in the Premier League. His work as Arsenal’s head coach and now manager in a role which is the first of its kind for the Spaniard, appointed at just 37 years old, has seen an incredible transformation of the football club.

He has gone through very challenging periods in his role, especially during the pandemic, with back-to-back eighth-place finishes despite picking up an FA Cup. But now his side are firmly established as regular title challengers and after finishing runners up three seasons running, it might be that this time is indeed the time it happens.

In those seasons, Arteta has changed, as have many of his players and the squad as a whole. Arsenal are harder to beat as a team; they’re more physically imposing, their efficiency from set plays is unrivalled, they continue to score at a rate that is up there with the very best, and their record against big clubs has been overhauled from the latter Arsene Wenger and Unai Emery days.

But Arteta’s own learnings, his own reflections, have shone through. Speaking to TNT Sports and specifically amateur north London side Winchmore Hill FC head coach Alex Lodge. In this set-up, it felt like Arteta opened up more than ever and credit to Lodge for how he conducted the chat.

One thing, however, stood out in the chat, and that was when Arteta was asked about the mistakes he’d made. He admitted that he focused too much on the tactical side of the game when he first arrived.

“A lot, but… One, where you put the focus sometimes and especially at the beginning, probably the focus was too much on the tactical aspects.

“And that means maybe you overload them with information. And then, how important is that emotional part at the end? When a player is not executing, why is he not executing?

“He’s not capable of doing it. You’re asking him something that he cannot do. Or he has certain fears, or doubts, or not enough clarity of why he’s doing certain things.

“And providing that to the player is the most important thing, I think. And in order to do that, when you connect and understand how the player reacts better to your demands, that’s when you touch the right button.”

This is so intriguing because one of the biggest early criticisms of Arteta was whether he was over-coaching the players. His style of play wasn’t coming through so obviously, and the results were not positive.

In the years since the squad has been overhauled, new players have come in, and you can see how the players’ style fits the role they’re chosen for most of the time. Look at how Kieran Tierney was replaced by Oleksandr Zinchenko and then Riccardo Calafiori.

How Thomas Partey came in to improve the six role, but now how Martin Zubimendi has taken it to new heights. The passing prowess of Granit Xhaka has been replaced with the engine of pure athleticism and all-around quality of Declan Rice.

Centre-halves full of errors replaced by the ever-consistent Gabriel, and how the integration and development of William Saliba has turned him into one of the best young defenders in the world. While other centre-halves at their old clubs, like Jurrien Timber and Ben White, have become some of the best full-backs in the game.

Arteta has cultivated a team through mistakes, but these have now led to a refined side ready to go all the way.