Rebuilding Arsenal: 5 steps to success for Mikel Arteta

Step 3: Win the fans over ASAP

A common complaint I hear from Arsenal fans is that the club is being run as though the people involved aren’t all working towards a common objective.

Arteta, then, should look to take the initiative to become the spokesmen for the efforts taking place behind the scenes.

Again, whether he actually knows what’s going on is largely irrelevant. What he goes on to say is far more important.

For example, if the club aren’t going to give him a lot of money this summer the fans aren’t expecting graphs of the club’s finances for the past year.

Instead, just hint that funds may be tight by suggesting “we’re not big spenders like United or City”.

Couple this with something along the lines of “we’re looking to invest in our defence,” and despite how vague that statement actually is, the fans will feel so much more at ease with the club’s prospects for the forthcoming season.

This is because the fans will know that one area of the pitch, about which they have complained notoriously, is being targeted for reinforcement whilst also managing their expectations over making a big-money signing.

Another possible benefit to this approach is gaining greater trust from the club’s hierarchy.

By taking the initiative to simultaneously address the fans questions without giving away finer details they’ll look to invest in Arteta more.

This is because their manager not only protected the finer details for his own sake, but also for the sake of those working hard behind the scenes.

As a result, Arteta could be rewarded with more influence in decision making, more money to work with or both.