Arsenal appoint Edu as first-ever Director of Football
Arsenal have appointed Edu Gaspar, previously the technical director, as the first sporting director in the history of the club.
“We are delighted to announce that Edu Gaspar has been appointed as Arsenal’s first-ever Sporting Director,” the official club statement reads.
Having hung up his boots in 2010, the former Arsenal midfielder took up the director of football role with the last club he played for, Corinthians. He also worked with the national teams of Iran and Brazil, before joining the Gunners as the technical director three years ago. He was the first in the club’s history in that role too.
Arsenal’s growth since then has been clear for everyone to see. They were a team that repeatedly failed to qualify for the Champions League, a team with severe problems in every department and a team that nobody foresaw fighting for the Premier League title any time soon. Now they are a team very much in that race, leading it, in fact, ahead of defending champions Manchester City by five points. Edu’s contribution on that journey has been immense.
“We are delighted that Edu is recommitting his future to the Club that he so clearly loves, after making such a positive and critical contribution to our progress in his time with us so far,” CEO Vinai Venkatesham said.
“Edu’s promotion formalises his already growing influence over our Academy operations, and we look forward to Per and Edu working together to strengthen the integration between our men’s first-team and Academy yet further.
Edu himself has expressed satisfaction with everything that has been done since 2019, as well as excitement stemming from the prospect of what is yet to be done.
“I’m delighted to have this new role which I see as an evolution and consolidation of the way we’ve been working. We are making good progress in all areas of our men’s, women’s and academy and we are all excited about what can be achieved.
“I look forward to building on the hard work of so many people and helping all of us grow together and enjoy more success, and am thankful for the trust the club has put in me. We move forward together.”
