Jettisoned Ljungberg explains why he left Arteta’s Arsenal

Arteta Ljungberg TEAMtalk

Former Arsenal interim boss Freddie Ljungberg has explained why he left Mikel Arteta’s coaching team in the summer.

Ljungberg was handed the reins when Unai Emery was sacked and took charge of six matches before Arteta was appointed.

The Swede took over in the short-term after Emery was axed in December last year and won one, drew three and lost two of his six games at the helm.

But the 43-year-old, who returned to Arsenal as Under-23 coach in 2018 , decided to leave in August. 

The official line was that he left to “pursue new opportunities” and his statement read that he was keen “to progress my management experience”.

However, three months on Ljungberg is still looking for a post whilst working as a pundit.

And now, after being moved into the stands, he has explained why he left The Emirates.

“What changed on a match day was that I would sit up in the stand to look down. I’d have an earpiece with the bench,” Ljungberg said in quotes in the Mirror.

 

 

“I would say how the opponents pressed.

“If there was a hole somewhere, if one of their players was not holding the line, if we should attack on that side or we’re having a problem with something, our player isn’t doing what we’ve coached in the week.

“It can be difficult to see everything when you sit down there (in the dugout), so I made notes, did drawings, I’d speak to the bench, come down at half-time and tell them what I’d seen.

“Of course, it was different from being on the bench but that was what Mikel’s staff wanted and (what) I had to accept and do.”

 


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Arsenal sad to see him go

On leaving the club, Arteta was sure he would come up against Ljungberg in the future.

He said: “Freddie has been a really important member of my team since my arrival.

“He did a great job picking the team up when Unai left and we all have 100 per cent respect for him as a man and a coach.

“I know I’ll be facing him on the touchline in the future.”

Edu added: “We’re really sad to see Freddie leave as we know how much he loves Arsenal.

“However, we know he has had various opportunities over the last 12 months and stuck to the job at Arsenal. Now he has the opportunity to consider other options, and it makes sense for his career at this time.”