As expected, Mikel Arteta was asked about the week’s big news as he faced the press in Milan this evening.
The departure of Edu from his role as Sporting Director came as a surprise to most, and the pair have enjoyed a very fruitful working relationship together. Both arrived in 2019, and have helped improve the fortunes of a club that was very much in the doldrums.
Reflecting on their time in tandem, Arteta said, “Obviously I loved working with him, I really enjoyed being alongside him in this incredible journey from day one, we’ve been together.
“First of all, I’m very grateful personally for what everything’s done for me, and then for the amazing work that he’s done for the football club. I think we both had this special chemistry working together, we really both enjoyed our roles and working together.
“And I’m very blessed that he’s been part of my life in such a beautiful place that I am right now, managing this incredible club, and he’s been a massive part of that.
“He’s had an amazing opportunity now to do something else in a different role, and he believes that it’s the right professional move for him.
“We have to respect that, and from the bottom of my heart, I think everybody really feels that we want the best for him, and that’s it.”
Some fans have been worried about what impact Edu’s departure might have, and when asked if he had a message for supporters who had concerns, Arteta continued, “Well, the plan and that starts with ownership, that is very clear and very ambitious, is going to continue.
“We have a very strong leadership team with an unbelievable know-how, a real passion and great feelings for the football flub, that we’re not going to stop where we are at the moment.
“And then across the club, the excitement, the passion, the understanding of where we want to take this journey remains intact.
“That means opportunities as well for somebody else to come and fulfil their role. There are a lot of people that Edu has brought alongside him in this journey, which is always very important.
“We move on, we say thank you, and we have to move on because that’s the reality of our industry.”
“We move on.”
Our dreams and desire for this club lie ahead, not behind.
I love this football flub
I love Arsenal Football Flub.
I understand the passion and ambition of the ownership, but that same ownership brought Sanllehi, so i dunno…
Don’t think anything close to Sanllehi will join us till Mikel has a say in the decision process.
Both of them seem to have worked well together in convincing ownership to invest what is needed. At its best, a manager-DoF relationship secures two votes for footballing ambition – the manager makes clear the level of player needed, and the DoF makes clear the outlay needed to secure those players.
This club has done best when those sorts of partnerships are in place – Wenger-Dein, Arteta-Edu. Operating without a DoF does not expand the manager’s power. It halves it.
I hope we get a fantastic replacement and become the best football flub ever!
We will catch 3 points on clubs above us every month and in few months, we will be on top. This is doable.