Arsenal: Mikel Arteta is a manager, not just a coach

Mikel Arteta was named as Arsenal head coach before the turn of the year. But while his impact on the training ground has been significant, he is proving that he is much more than just a coach.

At the end of his first major period as Arsenal head coach, the coaching skill of Mikel Arteta is quite clear. His tactics have provided definition and purpose, he has already improved individual players and collective units, and his overall impact on the team has been very positive indeed.

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But while Arteta was unveiled as a head coach is certainly a part of a greater managerial set-up at the club that features personnel experts who ‘manage’ the squad, transfers, contracts and the club more generally, like any modern-day head coach, he is asked to do more than merely coach the team.

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Few were doubting Arteta’s coaching ability when he arrived in north London. Even having never led a senior team before, only having been Manchester City’s assistant manager, such was the influence that he had on one of the greatest teams in the history of the sport, it was quite clear just how capable a coach he was and would be. But could he manage? Could he lead players, people, personalities? Could he man-manage, motivate, deal with difficult characters and disputes, encourage a collection of individuals to be a team? Great coaches do not necessarily make great managers.

But Arteta is continually proving that he is more than just a coach. His convinced Granit Xhaka to remain at the club through his conversations with the Swiss midfielder. He has coaxed work-rate and effort out of Mesut Ozil. David Luiz is revitalised. The players are responding to his work in training. Arteta is a manager.

He again proved this fact with his decision to take the team on a training camp to Dubai during the winter break. When asked about why he took the players away and what they would be doing there, Arteta focused on the mental aspect of being a footballer:

"“They needed three or four days off to relax their minds as well, recover the bodies. They have been through a lot in the last few months and now I think they are ready to have five or six really good training sessions here <…> Hours together, to spend together, grab a coffee together, to have conversations, to have unit meetings, individual meetings, group meetings about the things we have to achieve.”"

This is perhaps where his own experience of playing comes in. Arteta is a storied Premier League player. He was captain at Arsenal, played at Everton for many years. He understands the stresses and tribulations professional football, and he also knows how to ease them. This, and executing this process, is smart management, not just smart coaching.

Quite what the future holds for Arteta and Arsenal remains to be seen. But the initial signs are positive, in large part because Arteta is proving that he is more than just a coach.