Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has revealed plans for his latest training ground tactic, as the Spaniard continues to search outside the box for a way to give his side the edge and secure his first Premier League title.
Arteta believes RAF pilots could help his side communicate in a more efficient manner, and has revealed he is exploring means to have the pilots analyse their current communication processes and offer shorter, more systematic and streamlined solutions.
The former midfielder revealed the plan while sitting down with basketball coach Steve Kerr at an event in the Londoner Hotel in London. He was asked where curiosity takes him in his leadership role.
“To many places. It’s a constant improvement,” Arteta replied. “I can wake up one day and say, ‘My process on match day is not good enough. Why we are communicating to the players, starting from between us coaches to the analysts, to the other guys, to actually how the message is delivered. I don’t like it. Who is the best at that?’
“So, the British fighter planes, for example. I will get in touch with those guys, [find out] how they communicate, because that is life or death.
“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.”
Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta has revealed his plans for the latest training ground tactic
|REUTERS
Arteta had discussed his intentions at the Lead Better, Live Better Summit 2025 earlier this month: “So what is it? How specific can we be? How clear can we be?
“Bring them [the pilots] in and say ‘I want you to analyse our process, three days, how we communicate, how we do that in training, how we do that and I want to get better at this’.
Mikel Arteta has invited RAF pilots down to north London in an effort to improve and streamline their communication
|PA
“And be vulnerable, and get it smashed and say ‘you guys are terrible at this, you need to improve’ and so ‘OK, we are going to get better at this’.
“Getting to understand these people, how they think, how they operate, how this relates to Formula One, how this relates to something else and try to improve on that.”
JUST IN: Matt Beard cause of death confirmed as former Liverpool boss found hanged at home
Mikel Arteta spoke at Lead Better, Live Better Summit 2025 earlier this month
|YOUTUBE
The Telegraph also reported that Arteta is part of a WhatsApp group including other leading coaches across other sports, and is said to be continuously keen to improve his leadership qualities and standards.
His recent elaborate training tactic is just the latest in a long line of unique and outside-of-the-box ideas.
**SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE DAILY GB NEWS SPORTS NEWSLETTER HERE**
The Spaniard famously played Liverpool’s ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ throughout speakers during training sessions ahead of a trip to Anfield, in an attempt to prepare his players for the raucous atmosphere they were in store for.
He also hired pickpockets during a team dinner last season to steal as many personal possessions from the squad.
At the end of the evening, when players had realised the missing items such as phones and wallets, Arteta revealed his secret and the meaning behind the ruse: never let your guard down, always be alert.
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
EXCLUSIVE CLIP
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) August 2, 2022
The atmosphere at Anfield can be intense 🔥
So Mikel Arteta prepares his players by blasting out You’ll Never Walk Alone during training 🎶 #AONArsenal pic.twitter.com/CjBQ3Lsn3T
The former Everton midfielder also drew a heart and brain on a flipchart, demonstrating that both are necessary but must be ‘hand in hand’, or used in accordance with one another.
This season, he also had the cover of the tunnel at the Emirates Stadium removed to stop the noise from the home fans being muffled as the players walk out in order to create a more intimidating atmosphere.
Arsenal currently find themselves second in the league, after their late victory at St James’ Park against Newcastle on Sunday.
Their only loss remains against title favourites Liverpool, after the Gunners’ trip to Anfield last month.