Grass routes community coaches meet Wenger and Arteta

Football coaches were rewarded for their hard work in the community with a trip to meet Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger and Spanish midfielder Mikel Arteta.

The group, made up of volunteers from the Islington Football Development Partnership and Arsenal in the Community, quizzed the pair on life at the top of the Barclays Premier League in an exclusive Q&A session at the club’s London Colney training ground in Hertfordshire.

They were also handed the chance to take part in a special training session.

The coaches nurture grassroots talent at Rosemary Gardens in Southgate Road, one of 200 spots across the country set up as part of the Barclays Spaces for Sports scheme.

The group was chosen by Barclays because of their valuable work in developing young players in the Islington area.

Lloyd Agyekum, one of the invited coaches, said: “It’s a real buzz coming to the Arsenal training ground, meeting the manager and having a training session. I admire Mr Wenger – he always has a plan and sticks to it.

“I’m a huge Arsenal fan so it’s very exciting to see how it works and learn more about their coaching.”

He continued: “I like to teach kids the Arsenal way of playing – the right way with a lot of passing – and today will help me pass that on.”