Reports are coming in thick and fast that after a meeting with the board held on Thursday, Mikel Arteta has agreed to be the new Arsenal manager.
Reports in Goal.com claim that although a contract has not been signed, the former Arsenal captain has agreed to take the position as manager in the coming days. It is believed the North London side will announce the new manager early next week or sooner.
The news comes after a suspenseful managerial search that has taken place following Arsene Wenger’s departure from the club after 22 years.
Fans have been divided over the incoming manager, with some saying this is the right time for the board to take a risk on a young manager and others saying the former Arsenal player is too inexperienced.
The Spaniard was not considered likely to get the job but after two front-runners for the job, Massimiliano Allegri and Julian Nagelsmann, pulled out the race for the job, Arteta was made the favourite.
Max Allegri ruled himself out of the job after saying “I’ll be at Juventus next year if they don’t sack me…” and the Director of Football at 1899 Hoffenheim, when asked about Nagelsmann’s future, said, “Julian Nagelsmann will be our coach next season, 100 percent.”
The 36-year-old is currently an assistant coach at the Premier League Champions Manchester City and has been highly commended by Pep Guardiola for his work as coaching staff there.
The transfer window is now open, and the new manager is expected to make several new signings and could potentially overhaul the Arsenal squad.
Some transfers look to be going ahead before the new manager joins the club, with negotiations already in place for players such as Caglar Soyuncu, Jean Michael Seri, Kalidou Koulibaly and the exciting young winger Cengiz under.
