Arteta reveals deliberate travel disruptions in Arsenal's pre-season preparation

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has revealed that he deliberately changed travel and training arrangements during pre-season to help his squad cope with unexpected disruption. According to BBC Sport, he explained the approach on Friday after air traffic control problems delayed the Premier League champions on their Champions League trip to Italy earlier in the week.

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Arsenal were travelling to face Napoli on Wednesday and arrived three hours later than planned. Arteta said the situation was one his players had effectively rehearsed, because he had created similar difficulties during their preparations. He presented those exercises as a way to make unfamiliar situations less unsettling for both the squad and the staff accompanying them.

The manager's methods extended beyond adjusting departure times. He said he had delayed meals and transport, taken different routes to stadiums and made the dressing room hotter and less comfortable. Arriving late at a ground and changing an established routine were also among the situations he described, with players then required to adjust what they were doing.

Arteta said the intention was to reduce surprise and stress when genuine problems arose on a matchday. Rather than treating extra time on a plane as a reason to complain, he suggested players could use it to sleep, play together or spend time with one another. His message was that disruption should not become an excuse, and that staff should be able to adapt without panicking.

BBC Sport also detailed earlier examples of his unconventional preparations. Arteta once used a light bulb in a dressing-room talk about bringing energy to the team. On another occasion, he arranged for professional pickpockets to take phones and wallets during a team dinner, using the episode to reinforce the need for players to remain alert.

In 2023, Arteta introduced a dog named Win at the training ground to help morale and represent his idea of the club as a family. The latest explanation adds deliberate inconvenience to that list of methods, with the manager saying the pre-season exercises had helped Arsenal handle their delayed arrival in Italy.