07 November 2023 , 07:00
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Arsenal set-piece coach Nicolas Jover has been criticised by Gary Neville for the manner in which he conducted himself during Saturday’s defeat at Newcastle.
Jover was recently in the headlines when Kyle Walker refused to shake his hand at the end of the Gunners' victory over Manchester City. The 42-year-old, who worked alongside Mikel Arteta in Manchester City’s coaching staff for two years, has been the north London club’s fitness coach since 2021.
The Berlin-born coach was greatly admired within the game for his influence on City’s improvement in both attacking and conceding from set pieces during his time at the club. Known for his innovation on corners and free-kick routines, he has become a key member of Arsenal's coaching staff.
He drew the ire of Neville for his touchline behaviour at St. James’s Park, with the Sky pundit questioning why he was ‘screaming like crazy’ at Leonardo Trossard for a series of failed corners, while also suggesting he was ‘acting like the manager’ during the game.
“It was driving me crazy,” Neville explained on his Sky Sports podcast. “The set-piece coach down here, he was doing my head in. He was screaming on like crazy like he was the manager. I'm not sure that helps. He's screaming at Trossard who was taking the set pieces... sit down, he knows what to do, you've gone through it in the week, it's up on the board in the dressing room before the game, and you've told him three, four times.”
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Neville added that he thought this approach was counterproductive: 'To me, it felt like he was putting more pressure on Trossard taking the corners, which, to be fair, Trossard didn't handle because his corners were appalling.
Have Your Say! Do you agree with Neville’s take on Jover’s attitude? Tell us what you think here.
Jover spent two years at Manchester City and worked with Mikel Arteta before reuniting with the Spaniard at Arsenal in 2021 (Mark Leech/Offside)“They were real chances, in a game that's so tight, set-pieces, no one needs to tell Mikel Arteta or any of the coaches in this league, they're the vital moments, Arsenal are good on corners, they've got a good record. The delivery has got to be good, if the delivery isn't good it all falls over.”
Neville added: “I just felt as though he was being screamed at down this near side by the set-piece coach and, to be fair, he was probably putting pressure on him unnecessarily. When you go to take a set piece or a dead ball you want to be relaxed, it's not easy taking a corner, I mean people might say it's the easiest thing in the world, but honestly, it's not easy to take a corner, if you're good at them it looks really easy, but honestly, as a right-back I couldn't have taken corners and I could cross a ball.”