Arsenal plan to replace Edu who departed as sporting director last year (Image: Getty)
Arsenal reportedly have a five-man shortlist to replace departed sporting director Edu. The Gunners are said to be whittling down candidates ahead of a proposed appointment in March.
Jason Ayto has held the role in the interim following Edu's surprise resignation last November. The Englishman has already overseen a reported £51million deal for Martin Zubimendi, who is expected to join the north Londoners from Real Sociedad.
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His squad planning has also extended to the decision to allow Kieran Tierney to leave in the summer. The left-back has already agreed to sign for Celtic when his contract expires at the end of June.
Ayto is part of a reported five-man shortlist Arsenal have drawn up as they seek to replace Edu over the coming weeks. According to The Athletic, former Manchester United, Newcastle and Brighton chief Dan Ashworth is one of the leading contenders.
Ashworth made his name as technical director of the Football Association and also enjoyed success with West Brom. An ill-fated five-month spell with United ended last December. He has since been linked with a freelance role at Warwickshire County Cricket Club.
Andrea Berta, who was previously sporting director at AC Milan, is reportedly another contender. As is Roberto Olabe, the highly-rated Real Sociedad transfer guru.
Thiago Scuro completes the list. The 43-year-old has had high-profile roles at RB Leipzig and Monaco and he is currently CEO of the Ligue 1 club.
It is claimed that all five individuals have either been discussed internally by Arsenal or have held talks with the Premier League giants. The club's owners, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, are said to have been involved in the recruitment process and a final decision will not be made without their sign-off.
Whoever is hired will have big shoes to fill following Edu's exit. The Brazilian, who spent four years at Arsenal as a player and was a member of the Invincibles, was key to the club's turnaround in fortunes during his five-year reign, first as technical director and then as sport director.
Edu was key to Arsenal's transformation alongside Mikel Arteta (Image: Getty)
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Edu oversaw the arrivals of captain Martin Odegaard, club-record signing Declan Rice and many of the stars who have challenged for the Premier League title under Arteta over the past few seasons. However, there was some criticism of Arsenal's business last summer, which saw them fail to make the strides necessary to win their first title in over 20 years.
The lack of an elite striker has been Arsenal's downfall this term. Summer buys Riccardo Calafiori, Mikel Merino and Raheem Sterling are yet to make a strong impact.
Last year, Edu made the surprise decision to take on a role within the multi-club structure of Evangelos Marinakis. The Greek billionaire's stable includes Premier League high-flyers Nottingham Forest, with whom Arsenal drew 0-0 last night and stumbled once again in their efforts to catch league leaders Liverpool.
