After less than 14 months on the job, Sven Mislintat will leave his post as Arsenal head of recruitment on 8 February. The former Borussia Dortmund man made his decision after being looked over for the role of technical director.

Sven Mislintat to Exit Arsenal

Raul Row

This situation came about due to a clashing of interests with head of football, Raul Sanllehi. The former Barcelona director gained much more influence at the club following Ivan Gazidis‘ move to AC Milan.

While under Gazidis, Mislintat was free to pursue his method of using advanced analytics to identify transfer targets. However, Sanllehi currently favours using his extensive range of contacts to identify players.

To make matters worse for the Swede, he was also overlooked for the position of technical director at the club. Mislintat felt that this most recent snub was proof enough that he would never gain the influence he wants at Arsenal.

Despite his short time at the club, ‘Diamond Eyes’ recruited several key players. His contacts at Dortmund were vital in securing the services of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as well as Sokratis Papastathopoulos.

His analytics-based approached also aided in identifying Matteo Guendouzi and Lucas Torreira, both of whom have made great impact in north London this season.

Sven Mislintat said of the situation, “It’s been an amazing experience to work at a great club like Arsenal in what has been a big time of change. I am excited about what the future holds for the club and am looking forward to new challenges for myself.”

Surely his loss is a huge blow for future Arsenal transfer business.

What’s Next?

Sven Mislintat’s next destination is not yet clear. Bayern Munich wished to bring the Swede on board earlier in January, however, according to German football expert Raphael Honigstein, the Swede rejected that move.

It is unclear where exactly Mislintat will land, meanwhile Arsenal’s next move is clear. They will certainly need to fill the post of technical director sooner rather than later. In fact, they have a target already.

Former Arsenal player Edu has impressed in a similar role for the Brazilian national team. The club, especially Sanllehi, feel he is the perfect candidate, although nothing is official just yet.

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