Arsenal had an impressive campaign last season where they pushed Man City right until the end for the Premier League title. However, Pep Guardiola’s men just about edged the Gunners to clinch yet another Championship. However, there were clear signs of improvement from Mikel Arteta’s men.
Arsenal’s set-piece wizard Nicolas Jover
One facet of the game that the Gunners really stepped up in was their performance from set-pieces. Under the astute guidance of French set-piece coach Nicolas Jover, Arsenal scored 22 non-penalty dead-ball situation goals last season which is a steep increase from the six that they scored in the season prior.
Often, when watching Arsenal games, Jover is seen taking charge of the technical area during set-pieces whilst Arteta takes a backseat. The French coach made Arsenal the kings of set-pieces in the Premier League by making the likes of Gabriel and William Saliba extremely potent inside the box.
Jover has had stints at both Brentford and Man City prior to working with Arsenal. He had a lot of success working with the Bees, a team known for their creative set-piece plays. Bernardo Cueva continued the good job at Brentford after Jover left. Whereas, at Man City, Jover struggled to exert the same kind of dominance.
Es tut mir leid, Bayern!
When Arsenal and Mikel Arteta, who knew Jover from back in their time with City came calling in 2021, the Frenchman did not battle an eyelid and immediately came to the Emirates. We all know how things have developed since.
It has emerged that Bayern Munich have been continually approaching Nicolas Jover since June despite Arsenal making it crystal clear that he is untouchable. The German giants are pushing again this week as they hope to change the 42-year-old’s mind although they might be fighting a losing battle.
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Incidentally, the Bavarian giants are now managed by Vincent Kompany, a person who would know Jover well from their time at City. The Belgian is now keen to reunite with the French technical coach but he is likely to be disappointed. Arteta and Jover have a great working relationship.
As the old age adage goes, when it ain’t broke, don’t fix it! There is no reason for Arsenal to make changes to their technical staff that have done so well alongside Arteta and Bayern can forget about their pursuit of Nicolas Jover.
🚨𝐄𝐗𝐂𝐋: Arsenal contacted again by Bayern Munich this week regarding Nick Jover; Arsenal has firmly communicated to Bayern since June that Jover is untouchable. #AFC @PurplePanel pic.twitter.com/KmvSKvtPrL
— Purple Panel (@PurplePanel) August 9, 2024
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