Arsenal sporting director Edu Gaspar will soon be moving on to pastures new.
Having been appointed in the summer of 2019, former Arsenal midfielder Edu Gaspar has served the North London club with distinction as sporting director.
Edu has enjoyed success in the transfer market with Arsenal, as he played a key role in attracting a number of top talents to the Emirates Stadium. The Brazilian had a hand in the signings of Declan Rice, Martin Odegaard, Ben White, and many others.
Working closely with manager Mikel Arteta, the 46-year-old has helped to make the Gunners genuine title contenders again.
What is going on with Arsenal sporting director Edu Gaspar?
However, Edu has now decided to leave Arsenal.
The club were not expecting this decision, but Edu has had his head turned by the owner of a Premier League rival.
Now, attention in North London will turn to appointing his successor. Meanwhile, Arsenal fans are afraid that Edu’s departure will cause big problems. However, this is not guaranteed to be the case.
- READ MORE: Who is Edu Gaspar? Everything you need to know about the ex-Arsenal player turned director
Arsenal Insider writers on Edu Gaspar exit
Rosie Tudball
I have mixed feelings about Edu’s departure, I think the summer transfer window was incredibly disappointing given how the season has started. That sense of stagnancy in the market, because we’ve progressed, has to be ousted.
That being said, losing Edu isn’t like parting ways with any sporting director, the Brazilian knows the club inside out and has a deep connection to what is being built at the Emirates.
Filling the shoes of someone with such a level of dedication and understanding of the culture is near impossible. I’d like to see a figure associated with Arsenal in some capacity to replace Edu for this reason.
Lucas Arnold
Before the news broke, I wasn’t itching for Edu to leave at all, in fact, I was very disappointed at first.
However, with a bit more time to reflect, I’m quite excited to see how Arsenal respond and who they appoint.
Right now it almost feels as if this Arsenal project, despite how brilliant it’s been, has reached a bit of a stalemate.
And Edu’s departure should be seen as an opportunity to add fresh ideas, perhaps to find a sporting director who could add the one or two superstar signings that make the key difference in pushing for the title.
Edu was well-placed to do that himself, but if he wants to leave the Emirates there’s no benefit to standing in his way.
My biggest surprise is simply that Edu wants to walk away right now, despite any power struggle that might be taking place.
In a sense, Arsenal aren’t winning the trophies befitting of their progress anyway, so why not be excited about the club’s hand being forced to roll the dice?
Will Jones
Whilst Arsenal have remained silent on Edu’s exit so far, I expect that many within the club will be bitterly disappointed by his decision to walk away from the Emirates Stadium.
Arteta is likely to be amongst those sad to see the Brazilian go. After all, the sporting director was always an ally to the Spanish coach. Edu even protected Arteta when he was under pressure earlier on in his tenure.
There will always be anxiety and concern when it comes to such a big change taking place at the club, especially when the change is so unexpected. However, there are also reasons for optimism.
Fresh ideas in the transfer market could help the Gunners to address some longstanding issues with their squad. The failure to sign a striker has been held against Edu, and his replacement ought to make remedying this situation their top priority.
Furthermore, a new sporting director will bring fresh contacts and resources with them to the club, which will create interesting new opportunities and possibilities.
Luke Thrower
There is naturally some concern over Edu leaving Arsenal, given the role he has played in restoring the club to the top.
Moving on older players on high wages when they weren’t performing was a key step he took to improve the squad while landing young, hungry options to replace them has the Gunners playing less like a team of individual superstars and much more like a team.
Naturally, whoever fills in will have a tough act to follow to keep the club on the right track. That’s not to say it was perfect as the summer transfer window has left something to be desired, while a centre-forward has often eluded the director.
Perhaps a fresh pair of eyes could take the squad to that next level, but they must not lose sight of the foundations placed by Edu.
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