MIKEL ARTETA once told Arsène Wenger “enough is enough” long before he became Arsenal boss.
That’s according to former Gunner Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who’s revealed how Arteta demanded the legendary Frenchman modernise his old-school ways during the final days of his reign.
Oxlade-Chamberlain, 32, lifted the lid on how Wenger’s Arsenal were falling behind rivals when it came to match preparation and how Arteta was the man who finally spoke up.
He said on Fozcast with Ben Foster: “Where we maybe lacked at that point was an analyst, that’s the word.
“We did none of it and it was actually Mikel that made him bring it in.
“We used to just focus on ourselves.
“So Mikel Arteta was the one who said, ‘Listen, enough is enough, I need to see a video of Watford and what they’re doing.”
Back then, Arsenal’s focus was all about their own slick, attacking football, but the rest of the Premier League was moving on with data, tactics and in-depth analysis.
Arteta, who went on to captain the club and later return as manager, was already showing the obsessive attention to detail that now defines his coaching style.
Arsenal have not won a trophy since the Wenger era but there is a growing feeling that this could be the season with Arteta now the manager.
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Wenger, who took charge in 1996, revolutionised English football and led Arsenal to three Premier League titles and seven FA Cups, including the famous ‘Invincibles’ season of 2003-04.
But as the years went on, the Gunners’ glory days began to fade and fans grew frustrated as the club slipped away from the top table of English football.
By the time Wenger stepped down in 2018, supporters who once adored the man who built the modern Arsenal were calling for change.
Now, with Arteta at the helm and every opponent analysed to the finest detail, it seems his old demand for more prep was the start of a new era.
