Arsenal’s incoming head of recruitment Sven Mislintat admits he will arrive in north London to great expectations after the Gunners succeeded in poaching him from Borussia Dortmund.

Mislintat, nicknamed Diamond Eye, developed a formidable reputation for his scouting prowess over 11 years at Dortmund, with Shinji Kagawa, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Ousmane Dembele among his shrewdest spots.

The 45-year-old’s arrival is part of a major revamp of Arsenal’s off-field setup championed by chief executive Ivan Gazidis, with Raul Sanllehi having joined from Barcelona as head of football relations.

Arsene Wenger will work alongside Mislintat – the Arsenal manager has claimed Gazidis has “nothing to do with buying players” – and the new chief scout knows he will face lofty demands from Arsenal supporters and pundits.

“Going by the press in England and Germany, they expect me to sign a Dembele in each transfer window,” Mislintat said. “I'm being put on an incredibly high pedestal.”

Mislintat had rejected interest from European giants in the past, including Bayern Munich, but opted to leave Dortmund after being sidelined by then head coach Thomas Tuchel.

The scout’s departure has been keenly felt by Dortmund, with CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke admitted that the club had treated Mislintat “like a leper”.

However boyhood Dortmund fan Mislintat instead praised Watzke for his honesty.

“There were many things in that time that I would have preferred to do without, and the same goes for Thomas Tuchel too, probably,” he told Kicker. “In the end it damaged us all.

“I'm not mad at anyone, on the contrary, I find it extremely brave what Watzke said at the membership and shareholder meeting. To take responsibility in a difficult phase for the club has my greatest respect.”