Report: What Arsenal are 'highly unlikely' to do in Edu replacement search as January window plans revealed

Arsenal have been hit with a bit of a shockwave recently with news that Edu Gaspar has left the club despite his success working with Mikel Arteta.

Edu has departed The Emirates after some stellar work alongside Arteta that has seen the Gunners become genuine title challengers.

TBR revealed that Edu had actually left due to frustrations at board level and there even suggestions Edu is set to take a job working for Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis.

Of course, this leaves Arsenal looking to fill a void and Mikel Arteta himself is believed to be involved in picking Edu’s successor.

And according to reports today, it seems Arsenal will leave no stone unturned in their quest to replace him.

Arsenal’s January transfer plans revealed as Edu replacement search goes on

In an article for The Times, Gary Jacobs writes that Arsenal will look far and wide for the right person and crucially, plans for the next few windows are not impacted by Edu’s exit.

“Arsenal will not confine their search to England, knowing that the right person will add new perspectives and knowledge from other markets. Edu signed very few players from Brazil despite his knowledge of the market from working at Corinthians and as general co-ordinator of the Brazil team,” Jacobs claims.

“Arsenal are highly unlikely to consider a former player for the role — it was not a deliberate strategy to have three of them in key positions around the same time. Edu, who was part of the side that went unbeaten in 2003-2004, worked with Arteta and Per Mertesacker, the academy manager and former defender.

“Edu’s departure is not expected to affect the next two transfer windows. Arsenal, like many clubs, tend to react to opportunities in the January market, such as signing Leandro Trossard and Jorginho in 2023. There are already targets in place for the summer and the club have plenty of transfer expertise.”

A blow for a number of former Gunners

There is often a theme of players who are well-regarded at a club being given chances in these sorts of role and there will no doubt have been a number of Arsenal legends looking on with interest here.

However, it’s critical that Arsenal simply go and get the right person for the job.

We’ve seen with the likes of Monchi at Aston Villa how big this role can be and it’s vital Arsenal get it correct.

If not, then the club risks undoing years worth of hard work under Edu and taking steps backwards at a crucial time.