Arsenal sit top of the Premier League with an intense title race to contend with and Mikel Arteta has plenty of rules he requires players to stick to
Arsenal Manager Mikel Arteta during the Arsenal Press Conference at Sobha Realty Training Centre on January 27, 2026 in London Colney, England.
Mikel Arteta has plenty of rules(Image: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
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Arsenal are in a tight race for their first Premier League title since 2004 and Mikel Arteta is more than aware of what's at stake. The Gunners have led the pack for most of the 2025/26 season but have stumbled in recent times.
A draw against Nottingham Forest coupled with a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to Manchester United has allowed challengers Aston Villa and Manchester City to play catch-up.
The gap has shortened from seven points to just four in just a couple of weeks and fans are feeling the pressure. A tough away fixture to Leeds United is coming up next and Arteta is keen to keep the gap as big as possible.
To do this, the Spaniard has continued to implement key regulations to ensure his players' focus is solely on silverware.
Four-word command
Arteta's most important rule for his Arsenal squad was revealed in December 2024 and involves just four words. When asked by TNT Sports what the mantra for his team is, the 43-year-old simply said: "Love for the game."
The manager is keen to keep the love for football within his team despite the intense pressure that surrounds them on a daily basis.
Fans are expecting a league trophy this season and their three consecutive second-place finishes in recent history may be playing on some first-team stars' minds.
However, Arteta will encourage his squad to push negativity out of their heads and focus solely on keeping their enjoyment as high as their quality on the pitch.
Phone ban
Another rule Arteta implements in the dressing room is the ban on looking at their mobile phones during half-time breaks, so players don't check opposition scores.
An example of this rule came during the Gunners' clash with Crystal Palace taking place at the same time as City's defeat to Aston Villa. Both games kicked off at 2pm on October 26, 2025, with City down 1-0 in the 19th minute thanks to a Matty Cash strike.
Myles Lewis-Skelly of Arsenal talks on the phone as he inspects the pitch prior to the Pre-Season Friendly match between Arsenal FC and AC Milan at National Stadium on July 23, 2025 in Singapore.
Phones are banned in the dressing room(Image: Stuart MacFarlane/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
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Arsenal were 1-0 up at half-time thanks to ex-Palace star Eberechi Eze, but they were unaware of their title rival's plight at Villa Park. When asked about City's result, Arteta said: "No, I wasn’t aware. I just found out at the end of the game.
"I think most of the players as well, they aren’t allowed their phones at half-time, so hopefully they didn’t know about it, but maybe through the staff.
"But I think it was a really positive weekend for us, especially because we did what we had to do and then it shows the difficulty of the league, and how complicated it is to win these games."
Meeting point before games
One non-negotiable for Arteta is that players meet at the training ground ahead of fixtures - regardless of whether they're at the Emirates Stadium.
The Sun reports that this rule aims to generate team spirit within the group, with the boss meticulous with his requests in order to get the Premier League title over the line.
Myles Lewis-Skelly of Arsenal arrives at the stadium prior to the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD7 match between FC Internazionale Milano and Arsenal FC at Stadio San Siro on January 20, 2026 in Milan, Italy.
There is a regulation for both home and away games(Image: Chris Ricco - UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images)
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Other clubs near to Arsenal, such as Chelsea and Tottenham, reportedly allow their players to make their own way to home and away matches by a certain time before kick-off.
However, Arteta insists his team must meet at the London Colney training complex to be transported together to the games. This includes the 24-mile journey to the Emirates Stadium.
Keep the team mixed during mealtimes
William Saliba revealed in 2023 that Arteta demands the players sit with different teammates during mealtimes in order to bring them closer as a group.
Following his return from Marseille on loan, the towering defender became a key part of Arteta's back line and spoke with the club's official website about his appreciation of the manager's rules.
He said: "The coaches will speak to us about how important it is to be a unit and to be together, not just with the fans, but as a team as well.
Gabriel Martinelli of Arsenal during the Arsenal training session at Sobha Realty Training Centre on January 27, 2026 in London Colney, England.
Teammates are required to mix up their seating arrangements(Image: David Price/Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
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"An example is when we were on tour in America, for every meal we always mixed the tables. We don't get to choose the table where we sit at lunch or dinner.
"We get to speak to the coaching staff, to other players and I really like that. There might be a player there who you speak to less and it's a chance to know them more, to be together, and that all helps as a team when you are on the pitch too.
"It really helps when you are on the pitch."
'Collaboretition' colour-coding
Arteta has even been known to make up new words in his approach to coaching. The Athletic reports that the Spaniard came up with 'collaboretition', which is a blend of 'collaboration' and 'competition'.
The Arsenal boss is known to use this term on a daily basis with the team and includes it in the training sessions. Kevin Balvers, Arsenal's former head of methodology, revealed that the club uses colour-coded materials when working through tactics - red for defending and blue for attacking.
Balvers said: "In tactical meetings, I learned from studies that if you put a dark blue background the players will learn the information more than white, black or red as the contrast is better.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta is present during the Premier League match between Newcastle United and Arsenal at St. James's Park in Newcastle, United Kingdom, on November 2, 2024.
Tactics are important to the Gunners(Image: MI News/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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"When speaking about defending, we made sure the text and areas highlighted were red and when attacking it was blue. This helps their brains know instantly what phase of play we're talking about."
As well as this, Arteta uses an acronym - B.A.S.I.C.S - to make things as clear as they can be for the squad. Balvers added: "One of them was ‘BASICS’ — B for Boxes, A for Attack, S for Shape, I for Intensity, C for Compete and S for Set pieces.
"It made it clear what we expected from them and because he speaks that language every day, the players then speak it."
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