This advice to Arsenal comes from Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
It refers to the idea that one must take a step back and engage in different forms of self-renewal before growth can occur. In the literal sense, in order to most efficiently cut down a tree, you should take time to ‘sharpen the saw’ to ensure it’s working at its optimum.
This advice seems so obvious but is difficult for individuals and organisations to integrate. We are all so wrapped up in the ‘here and now’ and an immediate sense of accomplishment that it feels as if we are wasting time if we take a step back.
It’s why people visit psychologists; Why Businessmen go to professional conferences; Why teachers engage in professional development; Why self-help books are readily consumed; Why we take vacations to get away from life’s stressors.
Both personal and organisational betterment result from thinking differently and stepping out of a comfort zone.
3. Give clearly defined roles based on tactical approach
One value our club promotes is individual creativity and freedom while players cultivate their own on-pitch relationships with teammates. This is often an area of praise for our football club, but I struggle to think of recent major trophy-winning football sides that have not given players clearly defined roles.
Football’s changing landscape over the last decade has placed clubs on a more level playing field. Sports science, advanced analytics, and scouting networks mean tactical approach and man-management are vital to obtain a competitive advantage.
I hope to see more man-management from Arsenal going forward.
If we want to play with width, let’s drill Iwobi to stay wide instead of coming inside as is his default intention. He’s proven he can dribble by opponents on the flank just as well as he can engage in quick, centralised passing interplay.
If we want to press high, let’s get players on the same page when doing so. Theo Walcott doesn’t need to be strong in the tackle to harass and harry opponents and channel play to different areas of the pitch. Let’s drill players defensively to maintain distances and keep shape off the ball so we can hit teams at pace with a Walcott or Welbeck on the counter.
All of these approaches are not possible without a dedicated and meaningful drilling of player responsibility.
Then, cater to player strengths