"Arteta tells injured players to join the team bus to throw off opponents"

According to Oleksandr Zinchenko, Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta is notorious at the club for "playing mind games". The defender narrates in his recent book 'Believe' that he has often seen the Spaniard "tell injured players to come on the team bus and walk into the dressing room with their wash bag, to put the other manager off the scent.”
The 27-year-old is not the only one who has talked about Arteta's experimental methods, as the manager once addressed the topic himself. "I don’t want to make it easy for anyone," said Arteta in reference to Bukayo Saka's suprising start against Liverpool last month - the head coach had said Saka's involvement in the game would be "very uncertain".
"The opponent has to make sure they do their homework — like I have to. When I know, I am not going to lie to you, I am not going to say, ‘He’s not fit’ and then I play him — I would never do that — but, if I am certain or I don’t want to tell you, I will keep you guessing," he added in the same press conference.
With the Gunners' extensive injury list at the moment, Arteta will certainly have plenty of opportunities to throw off his future oppponents. While skipper Odegaard has recently made his return, Arsenal are still without Tierney, Calafiori, White, Tomiyasu and Trossard, who was the latest to join the list following an injury blow during the international break. Arsenal face Nottingham Forest as they return to Premier League action on Saturday.