A mix of Guardiola and Klopp, what a duo that could have been - Pep confirmed Arteta approached him to become his Assistant at Arsenal

By -
Liverpool assistant manager, Pep Lijnders has confirmed that current Arsenal manager, Mikel Arteta approached him in 2019 to become his assistant at the club.


Lijnders, who has been at Liverpool since 2014 when he joined from Porto had a brief spell at NEC Nijmegen in 2018 before returning to Liverpool the same year.

He was together with Mikel Arteta years earlier when they both took the Pro Licence course and they have keep a close relationship since then while they serve as assistance to the two biggest rivals in the league.

Pep Lijnders said: “Mikel Arteta had asked me to be his assistant manager when he was preparing for his new step into management. We were together years earlier on the Pro Licence course. His request came out of nothing.”

Lijnders was part of the Liverpool side that ended their 30 years wait for a Premier League crown while Mikel Arteta had been with Pep Guardiola since 2016 when the Spaniard arrived at Manchester City from Bayern Munich.

Arteta served under Pep till he left for Arsenal in 2019 and wants to built a chemistry with a combination of the best managers in the league at Arsenal.


Lijnders continued: “Imagine the assistant of Pep Guardiola and the assistant of Jurgen Klopp at Arsenal. What a crazy thought. Mikel said he felt: 'There was just a difference playing Liverpool before and after you came in.' This was the biggest compliment I ever got from somebody.”

“I politely said no to him. A few months later, we won the title for the first time in 30 years.” he added.


Author: Kehinde Hassan Afolabi

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Another Newcastle defeat means time to go BIG on Eddie Howe might be about right

By -
Image
Eddie Howe's Newcastle United falled to a sixth defeat in seven games as Nottingham Forest sealed a 3-1 comeback win in the Saint James' Park, adding to their Champions League and Carabao Cup elimination in December while they continue to drop down the Premier League table. Credits to the Englishman, however, he is not in an elite level. A project like Newcastle United's is in a stage where you say thank you very much to Eddie Howe, a bid him farewell. It was a miracle, what the former AFC Bournemouth boss has done in his just more than two years at the helm of affairs in Tyneside and after the club failed to make the statement upon their UEFA Champions League qualification, the time couldn't be more right. Eddie Howe took charge of Newcastle United when the club was deep down the bottom of the Premier League standing and helped them become the first-ever to avoid relegation having not won a single game up until Gameweek 14 in the competition's history. Newcastle Un
Read more

Rasmus Hojlund; a pragmatic solution to Manchester United's needs despite likely consequences

By -
Image
Rasmus Hojlund has emerged as a real target for Manchester United as they look to secure a main goalscorer, who will lead the lines for the club on a long-term. Erik Ten Hag has opted for a different approach compared to previous managers of United in recent times, whom had all gone for players of different status. Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Odion Ighalo, Edinson Cavani, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wout Weghorst are strikers the club has signed post Sir Alex Ferguson era, all of whom arrived at the club in their 30s. With Hojlund, United are looking to sign someone who just turned 20, though still has a lot more to learn to master the trade but at the same time, he has got the potentials to become one of the best around. The striker position has been a major issue for the club as many of those who had been signed has not lived up to expectations, while those who did ended up leaving due to their already ending careers. Cristiano Ronaldo and maybe Zlatan Ibrahimovic are the only two names who have m
Read more

Nigeria makes continental history as Osimhen and Oshoala win big in CAF awards

By -
Image
Victory for Nigeria at the CAF awards gala in Marrakech as Victor Osimhen and Asisat Oshoala won the major prizes on the night, making the country the first-ever to produce winners of both CAF Men's and Women's Best Players in the same year. Victor Osimhen crowned Africa's Best For the first time since Kanu Nwankwo 24 years ago, a Nigerian player has won the most prestigious individual accolade in African football with striker Victor Osimhen beating Mohamed Salah and Achraf Hakimi to the CAF Men's Player of the Year award. Osimhen, who enjoyed a sensational year with Napoli, delivering their first Scudetto in 33years and helping them to a first-ever quarter final place in the UEFA Champions League was always front-runner for the award, moreso after Riyad Mahrez failed to make the final three. Aside his conquests with Napoli, the 24-year-old striker was also unplayable in the AFCON qualifiers, scoring ten goals in six games and finishing as top scorer of the qualificatio
Read more