Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta hired professional pickpockets to teach its players a lesson as part of his training method ahead of the 2024-2025 season.
According to The Athletic, the Spanish coach secretly hired a team of professional pickpockets to steal the phones and wallets of Arsenal players during a dinner.
At the end of the meal, Arteta asked the team to check their pockets and many players realized that important items were missing. The 42-year-old coach’s idea was to remind his players of the importance of being ready, alert and prepared at all times.
It is unclear how the Arsenal players reacted, but most fans reacted negatively to Arteta’s training method.
“What a way to build trust with the players, by taking all their stuff,” one person commented on social network X.
“The players will never trust Arteta again,” another commented.
“What does this have to do with football or winning trophies?” asked another fan.
Arteta replaced Unai Emery at the end of 2019 and is under contract until the summer of 2025. In 232 games, he has lost 57, drawn 38 and won 137 – a 59.05% win rate, winning an FA Cup, two Community Shields and finishing second in the Premier League in the last two seasons.
In the pre-season, Arsenal drew 1-1 with Bournemouth, beat Man Utd 2-1, lost 1-2 to Liverpool on their U.S. tour and beat Bayer Leverkusen, the unbeaten Bundesliga champions last season, 4-1 in a friendly at the Emirates Stadium on Aug. 7.
The Gunners will have another match against Lyon in the Emirates Cup on Aug. 11, before starting the Premier League with a match against Wolves on Aug. 17.
