Rival coaching staff admit they’ve stopped listening to Mikel Arteta | OneFootball

Premier League coaching staff claim they’ve stopped paying attention to Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal injury updates in press conferences.

LONDON, ENGLAND: Mikel Arteta, Manager of Arsenal, looks on during the UEFA Champions League 2024/25 League Phase MD2 match between Arsenal FC and Paris Saint-Germain at Emirates Stadium on October 01, 2024. (Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is starting to get a bit of a reputation for withholding information around injuries, with his press conferences either offering nothing new or seemingly deliberately misleading those watching on.

Just this week, Arteta suggested Riccardo Calafiori might play against Liverpool, even though reports in Italy suggest he’s out for a few weeks.

The manager also said Bukayo Saka is ‘unlikely‘ to be fit to face Liverpool, but then the winger was with the squad ahead of the game on Saturday night.

LONDON, ENGLAND: Bukayo Saka of England reacts as he leaves the field to be substituted after receiving medical treatment to an injury during the UEFA Nations League 2024/25 League B Group B2 match between England and Greece at Wembley Stadium on October 10, 2024. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

If Calafiori is out against Liverpool and Saka is in, it’s hard to argue that Arteta was being entirely open and honest with his pre-match assessments.

But the Daily Mail report that that’s how he wants it, hoping for marginal gains from withholding information from opponents.

Whether that’s an effective strategy is another matter. Sami Mokbel reports that Premier League coaching staff at other clubs have told the Mail that they no longer pay any attention to Arteta’s updates, as they’re aware of his methods.

LONDON, ENGLAND: Bukayo Saka of Arsenal controls the ball during the Premier League match between Arsenal FC and Southampton FC at Emirates Stadium on October 05, 2024. (Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Rival clubs likely end up in the same camp as the rest of us, trying to figure out how serious an injury is using media reports, inside sources, and estimations based on similar injuries.

On that note, the Mail add that Saka has been running on the grass at London Colney since last week. With any luck, he might still make Sunday afternoon’s game.