Arsenal’s search for a new technical director continues, after both Monchi and Marc Overmars have been taken out of the running.
The shakeup in Arsenal’s hierarchy continues, as the departures of Arsene Wenger, Ivan Gazidis, and now Sven Mislintat have caused the Gunners to make major reshuffles up top over the last 12 months. The role of CEO was wiped out following Gazidis’ departure and replaced with a two-headed duo of Vinai Venkatesham and Raul Sanllehi, who serve as managing director and head of football respectively. A third role is scheduled to be added – a technical director.
Former head of recruitment Sven Mislintat was reportedly keen on taking the step up to technical director, but following Arsenal’s decision to look elsewhere, relationships turned sour and Mislintat walked in early February. Since then, Arsenal have been on the hunt for their new technical director, but recent developments have seen 2 of their top targets, Roma’s Monchi and Ajax’s Marc Overmars, slip away into other commitments. Monchi signed with his old club, Sevilla, and confirmed that he rejected Arsenal, while Overmars chose to extend his contract with Ajax.
It’s now reflecting badly on the club that one of the best talent-spotters on the planet, Sven Mislintat, wasn’t given the role, and the club proceeded to miss out on their reported top 2 targets as well. Overmars has done well to turn around his reputation in recent years, while Monchi has done the opposite, capitulating at Roma and pulling off multiple mediocre transfer deals. Neither of them were guaranteed successes and therefore, this isn’t a complete failure for Arsenal despite it painting them in a poor light.
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So, it seems Arsenal will be forced to look elsewhere to fill the role. The name Francis Cagigao continues to be brought up here and there. Cagigao has been a scout for Arsenal throughout the 21st century, and has focused solely on the Iberian peninsula for scouting – Spain and Portugal. He is credited with bringing the likes of Cesc Fabregas and Hector Bellerin to the club. To move from scout to technical director is a big ask however, and it may prove to be a risky appointment.
Steve Morrow, Arsenal’s head of youth scouting, has also been in the mix for the job. His name, along with Cagigao’s, seems to hint at Arsenal hiring from within after missing out on their top targets. Although this is very possible, it may not be extremely likely.
Along with the 2 internal options, Arsenal continue to be linked with 2 proven candidates that would bring some experience in similar roles to the club.
Edu Gaspar’s name continues to be brought up as well, as the former Arsenal invincible has done an admirable job as Director of Football at Corinthians and General Coordinator of the Brazil national team in this decade.
Perhaps the most proven candidate would be Lille’s Luis Campos, who has a glittering record in recent years. When Campos was at Monaco, he was responsible for the signings of Bernardo Silva, Benjamin Mendy, Tiemoue Bakayoko, Joao Moutinho, and a few others – key players in Monaco’s wildly successful 2016-17 campaign. Since then, Campos has been with Ligue 1’s Lille and helped turn the club around completely. Last season, Lille only just escaped relegation, finishing 17th. Now, they are 2nd in the table, thanks to some of Campos’ signings, most notably Nicolas Pepe.
As Arsenal don’t have a wildly vast budget, someone like Luis Campos who has a rich history of finding bargains to create a successful club, could very well be the best option.
It is likely that Arsenal’s search for a new technical director will go into the summer, but the sooner the club fill the role, the better, as planning for the summer needs to commence as soon as possible. Monchi and Overmars are now officially out of the picture, leaving Steve Morrow, Francis Cagigao, Edu Gaspar, and Luis Campos as the clear alternatives.