It is typical of Mikel Arteta, a man obsessed with the tiniest of details, that he claims to have been compiling clips of other managers leaving their technical areas during matches. His comments last weekend, after he received a yellow card against Everton for straying too far from his dugout, were made with a mischievous glint in his eye but they evidently demonstrated a frustration that burns within the Arsenal manager.

The obvious inference was that Arteta felt harshly treated when it comes to this particular subject. And with him, it really is a subject. For years, the Spaniard’s critics have complained about his touchline antics and his apparent penchant for leaving the confines of his technical area. At almost every away game, you can hear supporters furiously telling him to get back in his box.

Indeed, if you were to line up 100 supporters of rival clubs and ask them to describe their feelings towards Arteta, you can be almost certain that a majority would mention his touchline behaviour as a source of annoyance. Rightly or wrongly, he is the Premier League manager most associated with such transgressions.

Based on those comments last weekend, Arteta seemed to feel that this tag is undeserved. “There are managers that have the record in the league: 36 times in 10 minutes leaving the touchline, no yellows,” he said. “I am clipping all of that. I have a massive storage of images.”

Is he right? Well, there certainly are other coaches who have little interest in remaining within their designated zone. Tottenham Hotspur’s Roberto De Zerbi, Brighton’s Fabian Hurzeler and Aston Villa’s Unai Emery are among those who like to be as close to the pitch as possible. An analysis by the BBC last year found that Emery spent 63 per cent of one game outside of his technical area, compared with Arteta’s 40 per cent on the same weekend.

Since the start of the 2019-20 season, Arteta has picked up 13 yellow cards in the Premier League. Three managers have been shown more in that time: Pep Guardiola, De Zerbi and Marco Silva. Hurzeler sits one place below Arteta on the list, with 11 yellows. De Zerbi and Hurzeler, though, have managed many fewer matches. Arteta has overseen more than 250 Premier League games, while De Zerbi and Hurzeler have both managed fewer than 100.

Based on those figures, Arteta clearly has a point when he suggests he is not the worst rule-breaker on the touchline. His problem is that he often produces his most frantic performances during high-profile games, when the wider world is watching, and that there have been a few occasions when he has strayed extraordinarily close to actually interfering with play. He did once actually pick up the ball before it left the field, in a match against Inter Milan in 2024. Such incidents, inevitably, go viral.

Arteta is undoubtedly aware of this ongoing discussion about his touchline behaviour, and of the damage it has done to his reputation among neutral and rival supporters. So why does he bother? Why not take a step back? Why give the opposition fans something to shout about, especially at venues such as Anfield, where Arsenal play on Sunday?

The truth, Arteta says, is that it is not deliberate. He is so invested in the match, and so intent on transmitting energy to his players, that he loses sight of the white lines beneath his feet. “It is something that I don’t do consciously,” he said before the weekend trip to Liverpool. “Otherwise I would not do it.”

As for whether the perception of him as a serial touchline offender is fair or unfair, Arteta said: “There are opinions. The reality is that last year I was not suspended for a single match. I try to do my best. I think the rules are becoming harder and harder. I just try to help my team and the players as much as possible to win the match. That is the only objective and the perception will depend on which badge you carry in your heart.

“I just want to become the best version that the players need to win a football match. Whatever is needed, I will try to do what is right in the moment to increase the probability of winning a match. That’s my objective.”

At Anfield, however, Arteta may find it worthwhile to make a conscious effort to control his actions on the touchline. This is already a hostile environment for the Spaniard, a former Everton player and a regular title challenger in recent years, and the Liverpool supporters have form for targeting him. In May 2025, the Anfield crowd held up a banner depicting Arteta in a dress, captioned: “Always the bridesmaid. Never the bride.”

Arteta is also well aware of the danger of provoking Anfield. He learnt this the hard way, back in 2021, when he squared up to Jurgen Klopp. In doing so, he challenged not only the former Liverpool manager but the entire Anfield crowd. The stadium woke up, the Liverpool players were galvanised and Arsenal were crushed. At the time of Arteta’s row with Klopp, the score was 0-0. The game ended 4-0.

A repeat of such a touchline row this weekend is unlikely, given Arteta’s long relationship with former childhood team-mate and new Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola, but the Arsenal manager can be sure that the home supporters will be watching his every move closely. Whether it is fair or not, the reality is that nothing irritates Arteta’s rivals more than his touchline activity.