Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta used an electric shock to motivate his players ahead of their Premier League game against Brighton last season.
The Spaniard showed off some of his ‘unusual’ player management techniques last season and they are now starting to feature in Amazon Prime documentary All or Nothing. In October, he called on his team to rub their palms together in an effort to get “everyone with the same energy”.
That charming routine seemed to have worked, too. The Gunners went on to claim all three points with a 2-0 win against Leicester as goals from Gabriel Magalhaes and Emile Smith-Rowe in the opening 20 minutes helped them climb the league table.
Image Credit: Amazon Prime/All or Nothing: Arsenal
Arteta also hit the nerve after the club’s shock FA Cup third-round defeat to Nottingham Forest.
Three months later and the former Manchester City assistant was in a much better mood when he took out an electric pot to create electricity.
It begins: “(Thomas) Edison invented the electric kettle. Today I want to see a team that is connected because a pot by itself is nothing. I want to see a team that is connected to each other and that shines.”
“And you want to transmit to him (your team-mate) the light, the energy and the passion and the way you play football. And we all play the game connected, because what happens when we play connected, guys? What’s the next thing that happens?”
“For us to connect with 60,000 people (fans) who create more energy.”
Arteta continues: “Because in the end it is the current, which creates light and life through heat. Because otherwise it would be dark.
“And I want you to play like that today because how good we are depends on one thing. What makes us special is our attitude, and today I want you to play with that attitude. Get out there, turn on the light and play football. Let’s go”, said the Spaniard.
It seems the poached example did not have the desired effect, however, as Brighton took all three points thanks to goals from Leandro Trossard and Enock Mwepu.
They may have lost 2-1 that day, but the moment of the electric pooch will live on forever
