Since his appointment as Director of Football at Arsenal in July 2019, Edu has made a few mistakes at the Emirates Stadium.
The signing of Nicolas Pepe for £72m was far too expensive, while the Brazilian was also unable to find buyers for Shkodran Mustafi and Sead Kolasinac, both of whom eventually saw their contracts terminated.
However, Edu somewhat redeemed himself last summer.
What’s the story?
Well, on August 13th, Edu sold Joe Willock to Newcastle in a deal worth £25m, after his stunning efforts on loan with the Magpies.
Just days later on August 24th, Arsenal signed Martin Ødegaard for £30m, after the Norwegian, like Willock, also impressed during a loan spell.
In our view, the signing of Ødegaard was Edu’s best move yet.
The Gunners effectively managed to sign the 23-year-old for just £5m when you take into account the sale of Willock, who has failed to hit the heights of last season at Newcastle.
Contrastingly, Ødegaard has performed even better than he did on loan last term, as he’s started to become a regular goal threat for Arsenal.
In 23 Premier League appearances this season, the former Real Madrid maestro has impressively scored five goals, while also providing three assists.
Edu must keep this up for Arsenal
It’s all well and good throwing money at the likes of Ben White, for example, but Edu needs to place more attention on the selling aspect of his role.
Yes, Arsenal have the funds to make big-money additions, but the real test of Edu’s job will come when offloading those who Mikel Arteta no longer wants.
Liverpool’s Michael Edwards is an expert at doing this – the transfer guru somehow obtained a £19m fee for Dominic Solanke, and £27m for Christian Benteke, which Jürgen Klopp could reinvest in his own targets.
Arsenal have terminated too many contracts under Edu – he must find a way to ensure the Gunners are compensated for the removal of deadwood.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
