Arsenal to Appoint Richard Garlick as Director of Football Operations

Arsenal are set to replace Huss Fahmy with Richard Garlick.

In need of a new director of football following the departure of Huss Fahmy, Arsenal have sounded out Premier League director Richard Garlick to assume the position.

A paper thin operations team in north London includes Edu Gaspar, a relatively inexperienced technical director has in fronting part of a new streamlined approach to running the club.

Gone are the days of extensive scouting across the globe and a tighter, closer-knit unit will now handle recruitment and strategy moving forward. However, Fahmy’s departure was always intended to be made with a replacement in mind, who The Athletic confirm is Garlick.

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Who is Richard Garlick?

Currently the director of football at the Premier League, it is Garlick’s job to oversee football operations and relations, development of youth, broad coaching criteria and education of young players.

Brought in to Arsenal for his strong law background, Garlick is a fully qualified solicitor specialising in sports law. Previously he’s worked with a number of law firms before making the move into football administration, an area of expertise he used when becoming the director of football administration at West Bromwich Albion – the role he held before joining the Premier League.

What Will His Role be at Arsenal?

As stated, Garlick will take on the duties previously managed by Fahmy, the majority of which were contractual. His primary role was completing player contracts, as well as speaking to agents to discuss in detail the extent of the deals.

There is a highly experienced legal department at Arsenal, but the lack of a figure who understands the inner workings of contract management has been missed. Edu deals almost entirely by himself with negotiations, having previously worked closely with Fahmy, although Mikel Arteta is in close connection with the Brazilian.

Introducing Garlick will ease some of the strain on Edu who is currently juggling a variety of negotiation roles.

He will also handle relationships with football’s governing bodies, something Fahmy was not tasked with doing, as well as dealing with operations in both the first team and academy.

When Will He Join Arsenal?

While the report is vague on the idea of when Garlick will take up his role in north London, it’s expected that it will be sometime in the summer or beyond. He will not be involved in any of the movements in and out of Arsenal during the coming January transfer window.

It was vital for Arsenal to bide their time for the right appointment instead of making a rash decision in time for the winter period.