Express. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express.
Arsenal first-team coach Freddie Ljungberg handed Roy Keane advice by Lee Dixon
The Swede joined Unai Emery’s coaching team in June 2018.
Arsenal: Freddie Ljungberg could become manager claims expert
Freddie Ljungberg has been warned by his old Arsenal team-mate Lee Dixon not to be too stubborn when he eventually becomes a manager.
The Swede began his coaching journey in July 2016 when he was appointed as the Gunners’ Under-15s coach.
After a brief spell coaching the junior Gunners, Ljungberg became assistant manager of Wolfsburg, serving as Andries Jonker’s No.2 for six months before they were given their marching orders.
Ljungberg returned to Arsenal’s coaching set up in June 2018, taking charge of the Under-23s before being promoted to assistant first-team coach in June.
The 42-year-old has been tipped to take charge of the north Londoners should Unai Emery be relieved of his duties.
Dixon isn’t surprised by his old team-mate’s decision to go down the coaching route but has advised him to be a flexible manager capable of adapting to the individual characteristics of his players.
“I always thought a big part of Freddie’s game as a player was his brain and his ability to pick the right options,” Dixon told The Athletic. “When you play like he did, you have got to be intelligent. You have got to know the game, know what defenders are thinking.
“He was not reacting on instinct. He could work out where the gaps were going to be and the timing of the run needed. If you were that kind of footballer it would certainly suggest you have the tools to move into the coaching side.
When you think of someone like Roy Keane, who was so strong-willed, as a coach, when players didn’t come up to his own expectations it could impact on decisions
“His image off the pitch might lead you into thinking he is off the cuff and has flamboyance, but his game was more intellectual than that.
“You don’t time your runs as well as he did by just running. His football intelligence will hold him in good stead in a coaching capacity.
“He can see the pictures. For the intellectual footballers — and I put Freddie in that bracket — the ability to work out spaces as the game is going on can aid someone going into coaching. It doesn’t surprise me he has gone down that path.
“How useful that steely determination is in coaching is hard to quantify. When you are a player and you are driven, you are dealing with yourself.
“But when you are a coach dealing with 20 players in a squad, you have to be adaptable. They won’t all have the same characteristics as you.
“When you think of someone like Roy Keane, who was so strong-willed, as a coach, when players didn’t come up to his own expectations it could impact on decisions.
“The really strong-willed coaches have to be flexible with modern players.”
Emery has been thoroughly impressed by Ljungberg's contributions since taking on his new role, saying: “He knows Arsenal perfectly, the young players, he helps us every day in training, the matches and before.
“He knows the characteristics of the Premier League. I’m very happy with him.
“Each assistant has their work. We are together to speak with the players.
"We are in the dressing room, we spoke about all the situations individually. We share some moments.”
Arsenal return to action on Monday night, travelling to Bramall Lane to take on Sheffield United.