Arsenal are expected to appoint Australian fitness expert Darren Burgess into a new role as director of high performance in a significant addition to the Premier League club’s backroom staff.

Burgess is close to agreeing a deal with Arsenal in a move that has been driven through by chief executive Ivan Gazidis – who promised fans earlier this year that changes would be made – and that manager Arsène Wenger, has rubber-stamped.

The highly-rated Burgess will report directly to Wenger but is expected to be given a wide-ranging brief to include overall control of medical, fitness, psychology and performance analysis at the club, as well as working with the academy.

In fact, it appears that Burgess’ planned role encompasses everything apart from player recruitment and scouting, and is a sign that Wenger has won his battle to ensure Arsenal did not appoint a director of football.

Burgess worked at Liverpool from 2010 to 2012, where the players rated him highly. He then returned to Australia, where he had previously been in charge of fitness and conditioning for the Socceroos national team that reached the 2010 World Cup finals in South Africa.