Edu is no longer at Arsenal and the Gunners are finally on the cusp of announcing his successor.
It’s safe to say that interim sporting director Jason Ayto didn’t cover himself in too much glory over the winter by signing no one but Andrea Berta, once of Atletico Madrid’s parish, will hope for greater success.
Berta has a fine record, notably being the man to sell Antoine Griezmann for over £100m. He’s also welcomed the likes of Luiz Suarez and Julian Alvarez to Atletico.
Promising signs for Arsenal, therefore, that he can spot a striker.
11 Arsenal sporting director candidates to replace Edu
There have been plenty of names linked.
It all started up at the King Power stadium where a front three of Trossard, Ethan Nwaneri and Sterling simply didn’t work.
Merino came off the bench with a double-goal rescue act and since then, we’ve not seen the lesser-spotted Sterling start another game for Arsenal.
Truth be told, the Chelsea loanee will be lucky to ever start again in Arsenal colours, and that counts against PSV in the second leg on Wednesday.
In all honesty, Arteta is better off picking an academy player for that fixture, or as he did on Sunday, selecting Kieran Tierney.
The Scot’s contract expires in the summer and the club will not renew it so it speaks volumes that with Arteta chasing a goal and a win yesterday, he preferred Tierney as a substitute to Sterling at left wing. It was a positive cameo from the Scot too, who within minutes of coming on created a chance to score with a brilliant ball in from the blanks.
It must have been a kick in the teeth that even with Arsenal struggling to create chances from their domination of possession he was ignored.
When the England international arrived on loan during the summer transfer window, he stated that we were about to see the best of him. Unfortunately, it’s simply not happened for the former Manchester City man in north London.
Arsenal needed a body, they needed depth, but this has been nothing less than a failed signing. Perhaps Arteta’s worst one since he became the head coach.
His confidence looks shot to bits and as a consequence, he’s scored just once all season. That came in the Carabao Cup so it was pretty meaningless if we’re being honest.
Games
22
Goals
1
Assists
2
Yellow cards
4
Minutes played
863
Starts
9
So, with Tierney preferred, Gabriel Martinelli now back from injury and Bukayo Saka making fine progress in his own recovery, Sterling will be lucky to ever start again in Arsenal colours.
The second leg with PSV marks a fine opportunity to build some confidence but he’s not going to be here next season; prioritising Hale End should be their focus. The minutes should go to the likes of Ismeal Kabia or Nathan Butler-Oyedeji instead if Arteta chooses to give his main players a night off.
How damning is that for one of England’s most decorated players? His career is fizzling out with a whimper.
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4 ByMatt DawsonMar 9, 2025