Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta uses ‘desirable difficulties’ to prepare his players – is this a good coaching strategy?

By David Turner, Senior Lecturer in Sports Coaching, Anglia Ruskin University

The former England rugby union coach, Sir Clive Woodward, once shared an anecdote about an unexpectedly delayed diving contest, after an interloper in fancy dress had jumped in the pool.

Woodward described how some competitors became overly anxious, ill-focused and disturbed, while others stayed calm, continued their preparation, and treated these altered circumstances as part of the challenge. Not surprisingly, the latter divers performed much better when the competition resumed.

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