Arsenal’s search for a new sporting director is still ongoing despite hope of a speedy conclusion. A number of names have been thrown into the mix in recent months, with Jason Ayto operating in the role on an interim basis following Edu Gaspar’s resignation earlier on in the season.
The Gunners chief, who was assistant to Edu prior to his departure for a role within Evangelos Marinakis’ football group, oversaw a quiet January transfer window. He remains a possible candidate for the role on a permanent basis, though other names are also in the fold.
Real Sociedad director, Roberto Olabe, has been linked with the vacant position, though those reports have gone quiet since the beginning of the year. Luis Campos and former Gunners’ midfielder Tomas Rosicky have also been linked with the job, with the latter dubbed a leading candidate – though football.london understands that this is wide of the mark and that while Rosicky has been considered by the club alongside a number of other names, he is not first choice.
“The decision, I think, will be done relatively quickly, whether it’s Jason or somebody else, I don’t know, but I think that decision will be done quite early,” Mikel Arteta said after the closure of the window and yet the wait goes on. “We have the sporting director which is Jason, it’s clear and he’s been since the departure of Edu from day one he has been given full responsibility, all our support from that aspect and what the club wants to do after that is not on me. It’s a club decision to try to appoint the person that they believe is the best, and I will be in full support of that.”
Former Atletico Madrid sporting director Andrea Berta is another linked with the role, and reports in Spain claim that move is starting to build up traction. Edu García claimed that Berta is close to taking the job, speaking on the Onda Cero programme Radioestadio.
Having joined Atletico in 2012/13 as an international scout, Berta rose to the head of the sporting department in 2017 before departing the La Liga side on January 6th last month.
An Atleti club statement read: “The former head of men’s professional football ends his tenure at the club after more than a decade in the sporting department. Andrea Berta and the Club have reached an agreement to terminate his contract. This decision marks the end of more than a decade of work defined by impressive sporting result’s and the growth of the organisation.
“Berta joined Atlético de Madrid in 2013 from Genoa CFC, as he became part of the International Scouting department within the Sports Directorate, before taking the position of technical director of the club. In 2017, he became the Sporting Director, replacing José Luis Pérez Caminero, thus becoming the head of the professional football department.
“During Andrea Berta’s tenure at the club, Atlético de Madrid won the Copa del Rey (2013), two league titles (2013-14 and 2020-21), the Spanish Super Cup (2014), the UEFA Europa League (2017-18) and the UEFA Super Cup (2018).
“We would like to thank Andrea for all of his effort, commitment and dedication during these eleven years and wish him the best in his future professional chapter.”
Berta built up an impressive reputation in the Spanish capital and was at the head of some big money transfers. One of those being the arrival of Joao Felix at the La Liga giants for a whopping £113million.
Although there are question marks about whether or not that transfer can be considered a successful one, it’s a clear sign that Berta can handle high profile transfer negotiations. That would be a major weapon in the Gunners’ armoury come any summer transfer talks with the likes of Alexander Isak at Newcastle United.
Although Arsenal’s Premier League rivals are insisting they don’t want to sell their talisman up front and are said to have set an asking price in the region of £150million for his services, it’s a deal the Gunners’ could push for.
