Arsenal: Technical Director mess looming large

Arsenal’s search for a Technical Director is not going very well, with both Marc Overmars and Monchi rejecting their interest. The messy result is looming large and it points to a bigger issue.

When Ivan Gazidis began the restructuring process at Arsenal, it was an undoubtedly exciting period. With Arsene Wenger harbouring most of the power and influence at the club, slowly but surely, Gazidis introduced other individuals to take some of the load.

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Raul Sanllehi was introduced as the Head of Relations. Sven Mislintat became the Head of Recruitment. Huss Fahmy arrived as a contracts and negotiations expert. And eventually, Wenger himself would be replaced, not by a manager, though, but by a head coach, Unai Emery, formerly of Sevilla and Paris Saint-Germain.

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This new era was meant to be wonderful, forward-thinking, a long-term reshuffle that would change the very culture of the club. Within six months, Gazidis himself and Mislintat had departed, and the club were suddenly left scrambling for a Techincal Director with Sanllehi left to run the ship.

The search for a new technical director has not been as swift or as successful as Gazidis’ sweeping hires. In fact, as of this week, it has fallen completely flat. First, it was Monchi of Roma that rejected the Gunners. In a statement, he said of his decision to spurn a move to the Emirates and return to Sevilla:

"“I thank Arsenal for their interest. It has been the club that has shown the most interest in me but, in the end, I evaluated all the offers I had on the table and I chose the one that convinced me most. I had other options, and very important ones that were flashier, but I have chosen Sevilla because its sporting project convinced me. I want to thank everyone that contributed to my return to what I consider to be my home.”"

And then Marc Overmars, Arsenal legend, extended his contract with Ajax through to 2024, he too choosing to stay rather than take on the technical director role at London Colney. You do not need me to tell you that this is far from ideal. The technical director mess undoubtedly looms, and that is very troubling indeed.

What is even more concerning is why. Obviously, Overmars and Monchi have very real links to Ajax and Sevilla respectively. Being turned down for those clubs specifically is somewhat understandable. But there could be a more troubling, underlying reason as to why these individuals are turning the Gunners down.

There could well be a more concerning reason as to why these individuals are rejecting Arsenal’s advances. Perhaps it has something to do with the control that Sanllehi and Emery want to protect. Perhaps it is because they all know that Stan Kroenke is now the majority owner and he will never dig into his pockets and back the club financially.

I do not know what the reason is. I do not know if there even is a deeper reason. But now two key targets have rejected Arsenal. And that makes me worry.