When Raul Sanllehi arrived at Anfield last weekend, his grey rucksack slung over one shoulder of a club-branded suit, the word spread fast among the Arsenal supporters loitering outside the ground. Many reacted as if a Hollywood A-lister had appeared among them, clambering over each other to take a picture before he slipped away. Others simply wanted to get close enough to thank the man who has been cast as the saviour of their summer.

It must have been a strange moment for Sanllehi, the club’s head of football, but the truth is that it would not have been entirely unexpected. Earlier this month he had similar treatment outside Arsenal’s training ground, where fans had been queuing up for selfies, and it has not been missed by senior figures at the club that Sanllehi has become an online sensation on social media.

The praise for Sanllehi ⁠- or ‘Don Raul’, as he has been nicknamed by supporters - has included light-hearted calls for him to be honoured with a statue outside the Emirates. Others have quipped that he is the club’s best-ever signing. One fan even joked that Sanllehi was so cunning that he could make Barcelona and Real Madrid go head-to-head in a bidding war for Shkodran Mustafi.