Technical director Edu has big expectations for 2022/23 season

It was a rather hectic week for Arsenal technical director Edu amid a busy summer for the Brazilian.

Arsenal were able to complete their fifth signing of the transfer window over in the US as Oleksandr Zinchenko joined the club from Manchester City. Zinchenko was then included in the starting XI for Saturday night’s Florida Cup as Chelsea were battered 4-0 by a rampant and well-prepared Gunners.

Victories over Everton and Orlando City were expected, but the manner of their triumph over their London rivals certainly raised a few eyebrows – even if it is only pre-season. You can bet your bottom dollar that is not the Chelsea side we’ll be seeing in 2022/23, not even close.

Nevertheless, the feeling around Mikel Arteta’s Gunners is overwhelmingly positive despite the disappointment of last season, and Edu has big expectations for the club heading into the new campaign.

Arsenal technical director Edu has big expectations for Arsenal’s 2022/23 season

Many supporters were sceptical of Edu’s appointment as technical director in 2019 due to his connections with powerful agents. However, the former Invincible has certainly started to win fans over with his efficient work in the transfer market over the past two summers and his endearing personality which recently came across during interviews out in the States.

Arsenal are in a great position to build on their fifth-place finish in the Premier League last season, and while it’ll be tricky to improve due to the fierce competition, the club’s ruthless work in the transfer market has handed the manager a brilliant chance to succeed in his third full season at the Emirates.

Edu has long believed that 2022/23 is when Arsenal will re-emerge as a serious force following years of indifference. Speaking to The Athletic’s James McNicholas, the Brazilian said that his aim next season isn’t merely to compete for a top-four spot, but to wrestle with Manchester City and Liverpool at the top.

“A club like Arsenal, at our size, is not building to be fighting for fourth place. I’m sorry. We have to be realistic — there’s City, Liverpool, etc — that’s fine, I accept that. But also, you cannot accept that. Here, when you join this club, when you see our size, we cannot accept it,” he said.

The director is feeling positive about the club’s future, with the identify-shift and the alignment of a singular vision clear to see over the past 18 months. Everybody has bought into Edu’s five-year plan, and he firmly believes that year three (next season) is when we’ll see the project boom.

Let’s see, eh?