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Not many Arsenal fans will look back at Wayne Rooney's playing days fondly. However, the former rival of Arsenal has sent a crystal clear message to Mikel Arteta: Pay no attention to those below you.
Arsenal could go five seasons unbeaten, and rivals would say 'don't celebrate until it's six.' Arsenal were mocked when they were bad, and they're mocked now despite being the best team in the world.
The truth is, unless someone's associated with Arsenal, they probably have some strange vendetta against Arsenal. Well, anyone who's associated with Arsenal will kindly request a slice a lemon in their glass of rival tears.
Wayne Rooney wants Mikel Arteta to ragebait even more
Wayne Rooney (of all people) has come to Mikel Arteta's aid. In light of criticism surrounding Arsenal's style of play this season, the Man United legend has said he likes Mikel Arteta's strategy. If anything, he wants to see more set piece brilliance from Arsenal.
In his own words, Rooney said "The set-pieces are part of football – why would you not use it? They put bodies in the box. If teams aren’t clever enough or haven’t got the players to deal with it, why wouldn’t Arsenal continue to do that? I would be doing it even more if I were Mikel Arteta. It’s part of the game, and I love it – they don’t have to change anything,"
Wise words from one of the best players to ever play in the Premier League. Football is as much about strategy as it is skill, and to be honest, I'd highly suggest any complaining coaches (yes, Hurzeler, we are looking at you) to work on their art of defending, if they want to protect the art of football so much.
There's a 'dark arts' narrative surrounding Arsenal right now, which is absolutely hilarious. Arsenal play some of the best football in the world, but because they're so difficult to attack against, they're given the lazy dark arts tag.
Set pieces are not a taboo topic. Removing set pieces from the game eliminates any element of justice from the game. If you can maximise the chances you get from set pieces, why wouldn't you do it?
Truth be told, relying on set pieces is a sign that Mikel Arteta should be the Premier League champion this season. He is daring to do what no other Premier League coach wants to do, but why should he stop just because others don't want him to win?