Gladiators had a real sense of what pressure was in their day-to-day work. Sure, you’ve got Tiberius in the crowd calling for your head on a spike, but how about the tiger trying to tear your face off or the fella from L.A. Confidential trying to stab you?
Playing at Elland Road may not have the same life-or-death connotations, but Rome’s Colosseum has become a crutch for Brenden Aaronson to lean on. It’s a reality check when the going gets tough as a Premier League footballer.
Like many of his Leeds United team-mates, the 22-year-old has been seeing the psychologist employed by the club to fill in the gaps at Thorp Arch. When their lives are dominated by playing the most popular sport in the world in the most popular competition in front of tens of thousands of people every week, it’s easy to see why a little brain massage can be helpful.
