Arsenal fringe player breaks ranks to reveal Mikel Arteta's secret tactic for tricking rival managers before big games

One of Mikel Arteta’s players has revealed a unique tactic the Gunners’ boss employs to ‘trick’ rival managers.

Arteta, 42, will be hoping his side’s fortunes improve when they return to action with a home match against Nottingham Forest on Saturday 23 November.

Before the November break, the north Londoners were in a poor run of form, having failed to win in their previous three fixtures in all competitions.

The results saw them slump to fourth place – nine points behind league leaders Liverpool - in the Premier League and to 12^th in the 36-team Champions League group phase.

Question marks have been raised regarding the strength and depth of the Arsenal squad, with key players such as Martin Odegaard, Declan Rice and William Saliba having already missed key games due to injury or suspension.

However, it is another of Arteta’s players who has revealed the ‘trickery’ used by his manager.

Oleksandr Zinchenko, 27, explained how the Spaniard likes to “play games” with his rival managers to gain an edge ahead of matches.

"[He] likes to play games with the opposition,” Zinchenko told The Athletic.

“I’ve seen him tell injured players to come on the team bus and walk into the dressing room with their wash bag to put the other manager off the scent.”

Oleksandr Zinchenko has discussed Mikel Arteta's tactics (Credit:Getty)

However, when accused of using ‘mind games’ regarding the fitness of Bukayo Saka in the lead-up to the 2-2 draw with title rivals Liverpool in October, the 42-year-old maintained that he would say, ‘He’s not fit’ if this was the case.

But Arteta also warned that opponents should “do their homework” ahead of facing the Gunners.

Zinchenko has fallen out of favour in recent times, having featured just three times in the league this term.

‘Mind games’ were common practice in years gone by, with the likes of Jose Mourinho, Arsene Wenger and Sir Alex Ferguson regularly employing ‘tricks’ in the lead-up to big games during their successful spells as Premier League bosses.

But in the modern-day game, ‘mind games’ are seemingly not used as much, with Zinchenko’s former boss Pep Guardiola admitting he is “not good” when asked if he could attempt to use the tactic during the title race while addressing journalists at a press conference on September 21 ahead of City’s 2-2 draw against Arsenal on September 22.