ROVERS' Academy chief Bobby Downes today provided an amazing insight into the meticulous planning behind Arsenal's push for the title.

Downes recently got a special invite to the Gunners' training ground in London where he saw Arsene Wenger put his players through their paces first hand.

And he was overwhelmed by the incredible lengths to which the Frenchman was prepared to go in his pursuit of glory - even down to the choice of furniture his players sit on while they eat their lunch after training!

"I was very impressed by everything Arsene did," said Downes.

"He gives off this aura of being very relaxed and in control of everything and that was evident in the way he took training.

"He has three staff who work under him but he probably does 90 per cent of the coaching himself and his attention to detail is incredible.

"Some of what he did was very similar to what we do with the kids at Brockhall but some of the other stuff was also very innovative.

"It's not so much the training he does, though, it's more the thinking behind it."

Nothing appears to be left to chance in Wenger's single-minded pursuit of glory, almost to the point of obsession.

The temperature of the water given to players before and after training, for instance, is strictly regulated to eliminate the possibility of them picking up stomach upsets.

He also personally designed the seating in the canteen area at the club's training ground in a bid to avoid the risk of posture problems.

And, as for the training ground itself, Wenger had a major hand in its overall design and contruction, too, drawing on all the latest technology from around the globe.

"While I was down there I got talking to Martin Keown and Steve Bould and they said Wenger is meticulous in everything he does," added Downes.