Arsenal legend David Seaman has returned to the club in an informal coaching role.
Seaman played for Arsenal between 1990 and 2003 as the club’s first-choice goalkeeper, helping them win three league titles and four FA Cups.
The 58-year-old will now be passing on his wealth of experience to the club’s youngsters after academy boss Per Mertesacker reached out to offer him some work.
He will be working with the Gunners’ young goalkeepers at scholar and under-23 level on occasion at the club’s London Colney training ground.
The news came to light after Seaman was pictured with Arsenal keeper Aaron Ramsdale at training earlier this week.
Seaman made over 550 appearances for the Gunners during his 13-year stint at the club and he has not been shy to offer his opinions in recent times.
He was particularly incensed with Mikel Arteta’s team following their 5-0 thrashing by Man City at the end of August.
"The players haven’t turned up, even towards the end of last season," Seaman said on talkSPORT .
"I know Arteta was getting a lot of stick but the players weren’t turning up and I was like, 'hang on, these guys are getting away with murder', because there’s not a lot being said about them and they’re not performing to their best.
"They’ve got to turn up this weekend, it’s a massive game and I fear the worst if we get beat, because the fans will turn. They’re not happy with two seasons of finishing eighth, it’s nowhere near good enough."
Arsenal’s results have picked up since that outburst, with Arteta on a four-match winning streak across all competitions.
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The most recent of those wins came in the north London derby against Tottenham on Sunday, with goals from Emile Smith Rowe, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Bukayo Saka giving the Gunners a 3-1 win at the Emirates Stadium.
Now he’s back at his former club, Seaman will work alongside Mertesacker to help the young generation develop their game.
Mertesacker, who played for Arsenal as a centre-back between 2011 and 2018, recently explained his philosophy with young players.
The German wants youngsters to work on “four pillars”, which involve football talent, education, physical development and a “champion mentality”.
He told the club website : "Not everyone will necessarily lift a trophy, but it’s about your mentality and dedicating every single day, every month, every year to your development and making yourself the best person you can be. That’s champion mentality.
"The ones who have that will be successful in football and in life. We try to measure around these four pillars and make sure that the players have a target that they can work towards for each of them. That’s how we started the journey."
