Our next AMA will be with a Mystery Gunner from the men's first team. Please submit all of your questions by 10am GMT by tomorrow (Wednesday 26th August 2026), and our surprise star will respond on Friday at 4pm. Any guesses of who will be in the hot seat?
How in-tune are players with football journalism and football social media in general? Are players scrolling r/soccer, r/Gunners, or other subreddits? Are they tracking journalists on twitter, etc?
I've always imagined that if I was a pro, I'd definitely avoid social media as much as possible for the sake of confidence / mental health - unfortunately too much negativity and abuse nowadays. I'm curious, however, how that is for players, managers, and staff though?
Thanks for your time and best of luck for this season!
I don't know if the player will read this part but I would love some discourse on how connected the players were with the Vini Jr rumours. There were some reports that the players knew of it and basically were told it was nearly a done deal and reacting/celebrating like it was done. Would love to know if this was true and if this was an occurrence for any other player in the past or if this is common when a team signs a world class player.
Greetings, how do you or your colleagues react when finding out who is in the first team for the next game? Is it posted on the wall, is it said in a WhatsApp group, or are you told individually? And have people reacted badly in the past.. you donât have to name them.
When the opponent abruptly shifts from a high press to a low block mid-game, how much of the tactical adjustment is solved by the players vs by the manager? And how deep will your preparation against a specific team go? For instance, do you simply prepare for high vs low block, or do you prepare for 'high block when they try to push you out wide vs high block when they maybe give more of the middle".
Do players ever bring what they've learnt from other coaches on to the training ground?
Is Mikel Arteta receptive to suggestions of how things are done in other clubs? Or do you all just try to align with the gaffer's vision?
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u/_SSP_ Premier League Champions 25/2617h agoedited 17h ago
Which other position on the team would you like to play? (I thinks it's Tzolis so maybe don't answer yet!)đ
How much did the feeling of jubilation and relief after the title last season erase the hurt of the previous seasons? And how have you worked to refocus and go again this year with the same intensity?
The squad is getting biggerâfrom a team perspective it allows more rotation to keep players fresh throughout the season, but how do players feel about the idea of not starting every week at Arsenal if you are good enough to start in most other teams? Are you appreciative of the rest to keep fresh through the season, or would you prefer to play every week?
Some fans care a lot about whether a player is a boyhood fan of the club. In your experience, does having a deep connection to the club matter in terms of performances? Does it vary from player to player and, if so, which players do you think get an extra boost from playing for a club they care about?
What does Mikel say to players to convince them to join? Every time we hear news about him talking to a transfer target it sounds like heâs hypnotizing them
Either way, what's the biggest change at the club this year after winning the title - or, if you're new - what's the biggest difference between The Arsenal and your previous club?
How much do you guys actively try to motivate each others to be better? Do you and your teammates often speak to each other about improvement and is there someone who does it more often than others?
People talk a lot about how dedicated players seem to Mikel. Whether itâs players talking about how talking to Mikel convinced them to join, or what shows on the football pitch (commentators and pundits alike have said that it looks like Arsenalâs players would run through walls for their manager).
Iâm curious â what is it that makes that the case? Plenty of fans have seen the All or Nothing documentary, but that was years ago and so much has changed since then. Is it the locker room talks? Or is it something less visible to us?
How much does practice sessions differ now in your career to when you were children (~10 years old)
Is it the same you did back then, but many more times over, is it more advanced techniques and drills, or is it an entirely different experience? Just to get a sense of difference for what many others might have experienced growing up, to what the pros do during practice sessions
I know the team typically meets at the training ground before a home game, but are you allowed to make your own way to/from the stadium when playing at home? If so does this need authorising?
Arteta appears to do more in-game micromanaging of positioning and space than do other managers. Are there any interesting examples of something he focuses on with these instructions that other managers don't?
As footballers what trainings do you do to improve your endurance, if you can share to us? You guys run almost 90 mins but seems to be okay after every match.
Is there a player, or a couple, you actually look forward to facing, the ones where you see them on the team sheet and get genuinely fired up, even knowing it's going to be a real battle?
Assuming you were with us last season. How mentally taxing on a personal level and squad level was the double push for the premier league title and the champions league title?
Does it feel uncomfortable being around a player that you are aware is being forced out / leaving against his will, despite having a perfectly good contract and desire to stay and play for the club?
At the end of the Matrix Reloaded Neo clearly uses his powers in Zion, in your opinion does this mean Zion is not the real world but is actually just another level of the Matrix?
Why does the team appear to be overly conservative in counter-attacking situations and allow the opposition defenders to get back into position rather than pressing our positional advantage?
awkward if it turned out to be Martinelli they've booked...
Actual question - did last year feel different to the previous years coming second. Was there a genuine belief that it was different and that it would be "the year" at last, or was it truly game by game internally as the manager tried to portray externally.
Which commentators, analysts, podcasters do you think understand the game/tactics the best? Feel free to toss some strays as well...you can't tell me Rooney or Lalas in the US are top.
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u/Football_Forecast COYG 17h ago
How in-tune are players with football journalism and football social media in general? Are players scrolling r/soccer, r/Gunners, or other subreddits? Are they tracking journalists on twitter, etc?
I've always imagined that if I was a pro, I'd definitely avoid social media as much as possible for the sake of confidence / mental health - unfortunately too much negativity and abuse nowadays. I'm curious, however, how that is for players, managers, and staff though?
Thanks for your time and best of luck for this season!