Andrea Berta is expected to arrive in the UK before the start of next week as Arsenal prepare to confirm his appointment as their new sporting director.
The Italian has been in advanced discussions over becoming the permanent successor to Edu, who left Emirates Stadium towards the end of 2024.
Edu’s deputy Jason Ayto was appointed interim sporting director following the Brazilian’s departure and was a serious contender for the position.
Roberto Olabe, currently at Real Sociedad, and former Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth were also among the contenders for the role.
But Berta will become the club’s new sporting director with Arsenal now working towards the official announcement, with the Italian due to arrive in north London in the next 72 hours to officially begin work with Gunners.
There is hope he will be present for the Premier League game against Fulham on Tuesday.
The 53-year-old arrives with the reputation of being one of the most equipped sporting directors in European football.
He has held roles at Italian sides Parma and Genoa before joining Atletico Madrid, initially in the role as technical director, in 2013.
During his time in the Spanish capital, Berta was instrumental in signing Rodri, Antoine Griezmann and Jan Oblak.
The “architect” who helped turn Atletico into title winners
“He’s quite unique compared to other sporting directors,” Spanish football expert Guillem Balague told BBC Sport.
“He had no playing career, started in banking, and only got into football later, first at Carpenedolo, an amateur club, then at Parma and Genoa, where he built key connections with Peter Kenyon and Jorge Mendes.
“Under his watch, Atletico won two La Liga titles (2013-14, 2020-21), a Copa del Rey (2013), a Europa League (2017-18), and a Uefa Super Cup (2018).
“He’s seen as the architect of the squad rebuild after the 2014 title-winning team faded.”
Working with manager Diego Simeone, Berta helped Atletico make some astute acquisitions during that rebuild.
France striker Griezmann was signed from Real Sociedad for £24.8m in 2014 and five years later was sold to Barcelona for £103m. Atletico then bought him back in 2021 for just £16.5m.
Spain midfielder Rodri, now a Ballon d’Or winner, was signed for £16.5m in 2018 and sold to Manchester City the following year for £62.5m, while Slovenian goalkeeper Oblak signed from Benfica in 2014 for just £13m. He’s now widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
More recently, forward Julian Alvarez joined from Manchester City last summer for £81.5m and he has scored 23 goals for Atletico this season.
“He brought in key players like Griezmann (twice), Luis Suarez, Kieran Trippier, Llorente, De Paul, and Julian Alvarez,” added Balague.
“But he also had some flops, like Joao Felix, Kalinic, Arias, Torreira, but he always worked within the club’s financial limits.
“In total, he made 52 signings since 2017, spending around 828 million euros (£692m), leaving a big mark on Atletico’s squad. An end of an era for them.”
What’s on his to-do list at Arsenal?
There are a few immediate issues he has to deal with.
The main and most obvious task is to ensure that Arsenal bring in a much-needed forward. The Gunners have suffered key injuries to key attackers this season and have not brought in a forward for two transfer windows in a row.
Kai Havertz has done excellently in filling that void but at times Arsenal’s need for a natural goalscorer has been obvious.
RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko has long been monitored, while Newcastle forward Alexander Isak is also being linked with a move to north London.
However, Eddie Howe’s Magpies are in the mix for the Champions League places, making a deal for Isak expensive and more difficult to do.
There is also an argument that Arteta’s side could do with a player who has some flair and the ability to make something happen when they play against teams that sit in a low block against them in the Premier League.
It’s not only incomings that Berta will need to address. It’s a big summer for the club with key players Bukayo Saka, William Saliba and Gabriel Magalhaes entering the last two years of their contracts.
Berta will need to make sure that those players are locked down so that Arteta can continue to build on the impressive work he has done with the team.
There are also players who need to be moved on. Oleksandr Zinchenko has dropped further down the pecking order after the emergence of Myles Lewis-Skelly and the Gunners were willing to let him go in January if they received the right offer.
It is an exciting project for any sporting director to come into but with the Gunners challenging for silverware in recent seasons, this summer is not something that they can afford to get wrong.
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Featured photo source: Football365
Source: BBC
