Mikel Arteta handed shock blow as Edu quits Arsenal sporting director role

Edu has unexpectedly stepped down from his role as Arsenal's sporting director and is expected to team up with the group of clubs led by Evangelos Marinakis, the owner of Nottingham Forest.

The unexpected exit of the Brazilian marks the end of his five-year tenure in senior management at the club, leaving manager Mikel Arteta without one of his key supporters. Their close bond is well-known, but Arsenal will now need to adapt to this change. At this time, there is no replacement ready for a position that was created when Edu took charge in November 2022.

Arteta is recognized as a key member of Arsenal's leadership team, working alongside executive vice-chair Tim Lewis and managing director Richard Garlick. Together, they will play a crucial part in determining the club's future direction.

“This was a very tough choice,” Edu shared. “I’m ready to take on a new challenge now. Arsenal will always hold a special place in my heart. I wish the club and its fans nothing but the best.”

Since Edu, a former player, returned to Arsenal as technical director in July 2019, the team has emerged as serious contenders for the title. He played a key role in bringing Mikel Arteta on board just five months later and gained greater influence after Raul Sanllehi, the then-head of football, left the club in August 2020. Although there were some ups and downs early on, Edu is now seen as a crucial figure behind a strong and effective transfer strategy. This strategy has successfully brought in players like Martin Ødegaard, Declan Rice, Ben White, Gabriel Magalhães, and Gabriel Jesus, significantly changing the team's dynamics. The club revamped its recruitment process and moved past the burdens associated with high-profile, costly players like Mesut Özil and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Recent transfer windows have been frustrating, mainly due to the absence of reliable substitutes for Ødegaard and Bukayo Saka, along with ongoing concerns about the centre-forward role. Currently, Arsenal sits in fifth place in this season's Premier League after a rocky start plagued by injuries, during which they have struggled to find the fluidity that characterized Arteta's previous successes. Nevertheless, these issues are not thought to have influenced Edu's decision to leave.

Edu has strong relationships with important figures in Arsenal's management, especially with Arteta, and his departure was amicable, not due to any conflict within the club. Although there has been ongoing interest from Marinakis, his upcoming exit wasn’t clearly indicated in advance. The timing of his departure likely hinges on settling compensation with his future employer and addressing other contractual details.

He is now set to assume a high-ranking position within Marinakis’s organization, possibly as the chief executive responsible for managing the entire network. At present, he oversees three clubs: Forest, Olympiakos, and the Portuguese team Rio Ave, but plans for growth are expected soon. Edu has received an offer that is significantly more lucrative than his current deal in north London and is thought to see this opportunity as a crucial advancement in his career.

At 46 years old, he served as the director of football at Corinthians after wrapping up his playing career. Before going back to Arsenal, he worked as a team coordinator for Brazil's national team. Although his inexperience in high-level European football management raised some doubts initially, he is now ready to take on a new opportunity with the driven and somewhat controversial Marinakis. His team, Forest, has been one of the standout surprises of the season, currently holding the third position in the league.

A vivid reminder of the chaos often associated with Marinakis came on Monday morning when the Football Association announced that his appeal against a five-match stadium ban for spitting had been rejected. The Greek shipping tycoon received this suspension after he was found guilty of directing this offense at match officials following the conclusion of Forest's game against Fulham on September 28. An independent regulatory committee labeled his actions as “an outrageous act of disrespect.”