Mikel Arteta has a top-quality roster of coaching staff supporting him at Arsenal, and some of his key assistants have a lot of pedigree within top-level football.
Arteta’s main assistant is Dutch coach Albert Stuivenberg, who many will recognise as the main coach alongside the Spaniard on the bench during matches.
He joined Arsenal at the same time as Arteta in 2019, but whilst Arteta arrived having only performed an assistant role at Manchester City, Stuivenberg contrasted perfectly as he already had a lot of experience under his belt.
Prior to his arrival at the Emirates Stadium to join Arteta’s coaching staff, Stuivenberg had an established career as a player and a coach, which Arsenal fans may not know a lot about.
Who is the Arsenal assistant manager?
Albert Stuivenberg is the Arsenal assistant manager, often seen sitting next to Mikel Arteta in the dugout for the games.
The coach has been affectionately dubbed “Airpod Albert” by some of the Arsenal faithful, due to him often being seen with an Airpod in his ear.
Why does Albert Stuivenberg wear airpods?
It was reported in 2022 that Stuivenberg’s reason for wearing airpods on the touchline is to enable communication with other staff members.
Out of Arteta’s three main assistants, Stuivenberg, Carlos Cuesta and Miguel Molina, one sits in the stands, and the trio usually communicate via a three-way Whatsapp call.
Stuivenberg would then pass information onto Arteta from the other coaches, meaning that Arteta can gain extra insight from a different angle within the stadium.
Albert Stuivenberg’s age, height and birthplace
Stuivenberg was born on August 5, 1970, making him 54 years old at the time of writing. He was born and raised in Rotterdam in the Netherlands and stands at five feet and eight inches tall.
Albert Stuivenberg’s playing career
Stuivenberg had a short playing career. Having progressed through the Feyenoord Academy in the 1980s, he went on to play for HFC Haarlem and SC Telstar in the Netherlands as a central midfielder, before retiring in 1989 after picking up a serious injury early on in his career.
The beginning of Albert Stuivenberg’s coaching career
After retiring from playing, Stuivenberg began coaching at his boyhood club Feyenoord, initially coaching the youth teams before becoming the head of the academy.
Stuivenberg spent 13 years at Feyenoord, where he worked with top young talents including Robin van Persie, before becoming the head of youth at Dubai-based side Al-Jazira in 2004.
In 2006, Stuivenberg finally landed his first managerial role, as he coached the Netherlands under-17 side, and he won back-to-back European Championships before he was promoted to the under-21s, and he was growing in stature as a coach.
Albert Stuivenberg’s time at Manchester United
Dutch manager Louis van Gaal joined Manchester United in 2014, replacing David Moyes, and he sought out Stuivenberg to become his assistant.
Van Gaal lasted two seasons before he was dismissed in 2016, after winning the FA Cup. Stuivenberg departed Old Trafford alongside Van Gaal, but there were other roles waiting for him.
Stuivenberg’s failed managerial stint
Stuivenberg did have some time as a head coach as he joined Belgian side Genk in 2017, but he was sacked less than a year later despite leading them to the Europa League quarter-finals, with eventual Arsenal goalkeeper Mat Ryan in his squad.
However, he was quickly offered a job as assistant manager to the Wales National Team by his former Man United colleague Ryan Giggs, and this was crucial in his eventual move to Arsenal.
How Mikel Arteta met Albert Stuivenberg
Before he became Arsenal manager, Arteta was already planning ahead for an eventual managerial role, and he had earmarked Welsh coach Osian Roberts during his coaching badges with the Welsh Football Association.
However, Roberts was committed to his role in the Moroccan National Team setup when Arteta approached him before joining Arsenal, and he could not become his assistant.
Roberts did then recommend Stuivenberg to Arteta, and the pair quickly realised that they were a strong match for each other.
“It’s not unusual for a young manager to come and ask me for recommendations — they usually know the profile of coach they want, but might not know the name,” Roberts claimed in an interview with The Athletic.
“I knew Mikel and what he would need from his right-hand man. I thought about it for a few days, and the one that met the profile best was Albert.”
Albert Stuivenberg’s impact as Arsenal assistant manager
Stuivenberg is recognisable on the Arsenal bench given that he is always wearing Airpod earphones in order to communicate with other analysts during games.
The coach has taken charge of two Arsenal games: a 2-1 defeat to Manchester City when Arteta was unavailable due to illness, and a 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa, with Arteta banned from the touchline.
His impact has been significant though. During his time as Genk manager, Stuivenberg worked with a young Leandro Trossard, and he is said to have played a big part in convincing Arteta to sign the Belgian in January 2023.
What Mikel Arteta has said about Albert Stuivenberg
Before Stuivenberg took charge of the team in Arteta’s absence against Man City in January 2022, Arteta sang his praises, highlighting his assistant’s experience.
“I met him a few years ago through another coach. He’s a coach that I knew before because of his reputation and who he’d been working under before,” Arteta claimed.
“We had a really good connection, we have the same belief, think about the game in the same way and share all of the values that we believe have to be installed in the club.
“He’s someone that is very close to me. He’s more than capable, he’s done it before so in that sense, I’m very relaxed about it.”
Could Albert Stuivenberg leave Arsenal?
Stuivenberg’s work at Arsenal has not gone unnoticed, as he has been linked with several managerial roles.
Dutch giants Ajax have been in crisis, and their search for a new manager led them to Stuivenberg. It was reported that Ajax were ready to make Arsenal assistant Stuivenberg their head coach in October 2023, but they eventually moved for Francesco Farioli instead.
Arteta will be glad, as losing his trusted assistant would be a big blow at this point in their respective careers, and the pair look set to continue working together.
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