Three available Sporting Directors Arsenal could hire to replace Edu Gaspar immediately - opinion

There has now been a shock development at Arsenal after Edu Gaspar stepped down from his position as Director of Football.

The Brazilian was a key element of Arsenal’s resurgence under Mikel Arteta – working closely with the Spaniard to transform the squad and restructure the Gunners behind the scenes.

Interestingly, Edu could end up at Nottingham Forest – with City Ground chief Evangelos Marinakis a huge fan of the South American’s work.

In the meantime, Arsenal are without a Director of Football – arguably one of the most important roles in the modern era of this sport – so let’s take a look at some currently unemployed options who are available for the Gunners to hire immediately as a replacement for Edu Gaspar.

Ralf Rangnick

Now, this would be an interesting appointment.

Ralf Rangnick is currently in charge of the Austria national team, but the German previously juggled that job with a consultancy role at Manchester United, so he could be open to returning to a similar position at Arsenal.

The 66-year-old has been dubbed the “godfather” of modern football in Germany, having been known to influence the tactical styles of both Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel, while also helping the Red Bull franchise rise from €120m in market value to €1.2bn during his eight years as their Director of Football.

Tiago Pinto

Roma and Tiago Pinto parted ways back in January following a mutual agreement, after helping the Italian giants win the UEFA Conference League title in May 2022 under Jose Mourinho.

It was the Portuguese negotiator who lured Mourinho to Rome, while also making some impressive signings in The Eternal City – such as Paulo Dybala on a free transfer.

Michael Zorc

Arsenal were actually linked with Michael Zorc back in 2017 as the Gunners searched for a new Director of Football – and despite retiring when leaving the Signal Iduna Park in 2022, he may be tempted by a new challenge in north London.

The 62-year-old made a name for himself after overseeing a stunning job at Borussia Dortmund, where he hired Klopp, unearthed Robert Lewandowski, and also managed to sell Jadon Sancho, who he signed for just £8m, to Manchester United in a £73m deal.

Zorc also signed Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham during his time in Dortmund – so the German would be an exciting option to replace Edu.