Arsenal appoint Raul Sanllehi as head of football relations

Raul Sanllehi Joins Arsenal Management Team

Arsenal is getting a major overhaul of their managerial structure, starting with the head of football relations. The Gunners managed to snap up Barcelona chief, Raul Sanllehi after the Spaniard decided to quit the team after fifteen years at the famous ‘Nau Camp’. Sanllehi’s appointment comes just a few weeks after Arsenal raided Dortmund for Sven Mislintat who is now their new head of recruitment.
A change in structure was promised last season already and is being pushed along with great enthusiasm from the powers that be. Sanllehi will join Arsenal and work alongside Mislintat and Wenger to form a completely new-look senior structure that will hopefully take the team to new heights.

The arrival of Mislintat and Sanllehi comes after Arsenal’s head transfer negotiator Dick Law resigned in September. His resignation was somewhat expected since the club received much criticism for their wavering success in recent years. Law also found is difficult to make any headway convincing Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez to commit to new contracts with the Gunners.

In terms of credentials, Sanllehi comes with 15 years’ experience working at Barcelona. He has survived three club presidents and has been directly credited for the signing of influential players such as Luis Suarez and Neymar. Arsenal are hoping he will be making as much of an impact at the Emirates as he did at Barca. The role he is taking on is a bit like playing online real money pokies in that you never really know how successful you are going to be until you hit the jackpot.

Taking the Team to New Heights

As for Wenger, he resisted taking up the role of director of football, preferring instead to be in charge of the daily running of the club. However, under the terms of his new contract, which he signed last summer, Wenger would have to let someone else come in and help with contract talks and talent spotting.

Speaking to the press, Arsenal Chief Ivan Gazidis said that over a three-year period, thy have managed to supplement their team with top-class expertise across all their operations. The appointment of Sanllehi is another important step in developing the type of structure the team needs to take things to the next level. According to Gazidis, Sanllehi has been involved in some of the biggest transfers in European football and comes across with extensive contracts.

One of the main decisions that needs to be made by the new-look management team is what to do about Ozil and Sanchez. Both players contracts come to an end this season and the Gunners face the daunting prospect of losing two of their best players without a fee. If neither player wants to commit to Arsenal beyond the summer, the Gunners could be forced to sell them in the upcoming January transfer window to bring in a bit of cash.