The two Arsenal players on the forefront when it comes to fitness in training are Lucas Torreira and Granit Xhaka, says Darren Burgess.
Burgess, the Director of High Performance, worked under the previous manager Arsene Wenger and is currently working with Unai Emery.
He has been speaking on his observations regarding how the team had fared under both administrations. It was in the process that he compared the approaches of predecessor and successor.
Apart from revealing the personality of the managers, the member of the Arsenal fitness crew has delved into player performance in training.
An assessment by him adjudged Xhaka and Torreira the best as a result of the maximum training they put into drills.
The latter is so dedicated to the point that he beats himself up when he feels he has done below par in training.
‘I’ll tell you who I really like, the two central midfielders; Lucas Torreira and Granit Xhaka,’ Burgess told Optus Sport.
‘I love the fact that Lucas Torreira, in every single drill, takes it personally if someone gets by him. ‘I love that in him. Granit Xhaka is exactly the same whether it’s in the gym or on the pitch. ‘Every moment counts and I reckon that separates the really good players and the top players.
‘Some think they can turn it on in the game, you just can’t at this level, you have to train that way and those two do it superbly.'
This confession is a valid one going by the way these two fare when they are on the field of play. After all, one cannot perform better on the pitch than he does in training.
Torreira has made himself a very important figure at Arsenal since joining from Sampdoria last summer.
The Uruguayan international had no challenges as he immediately hit the ground running against the expectations of many who thought he would have it tough in his adaptation journey.
He is so vital. His absence from our last three Premier League games as a result of suspension was noticed especially when we lost against Everton about a week ago.
The 23-year-old midfielder was on target in Arsenal's 2-0 win over Napoli in the first leg of the Europa League quarter-final last week.
Xhaka has also not played since injuring his groin in the last international break. It remains to be known if the Swiss will be fit in time to face Watford on Monday night.
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