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Zeljko Buvac to Reportedly Succeed Arsene Wenger at Arsenal in Latest Rumours
May 1, 2018
Liverpool assistant manager Zeljko Buvac is reportedly in line to take over from Arsene Wenger at Arsenal this summer.
It has been reported by Bosnian news outlet Pravda BL (h/t Sport Witness) that Buvac will leave the Reds at the end of the campaign to succeed the Frenchman, who has been in charge of the Gunners for 22 years.
As noted by Sport Witness, the source is "local" to Buvac, who is of Bosnian descent. Sport Witness provided further detail on the speculation on Twitter:
Meanwhile, journalist Chris Williams provided more details about the source, including a story that said Buvac and Klopp would be on their way to Liverpool from October 2015:
The Liverpool coach, who has been the long-term assistant to Reds manager Jurgen Klopp, is reportedly set to step away from the first team between now and the end of the campaign due to personal reasons, per James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo.
While Pearce added that Buvac remains on the Reds' books, according to Chris Bascombe of the Daily Telegraph, he is set to leave Anfield at the end of the campaign.
It would be a remarkable appointment from Arsenal if they were to move for the 56-year-old given he has no managerial experience.
As relayed by football writer Lars Pollman, to see him take the position would be a surprise:
There are links to consider, though. Buvac and Klopp previously worked together at Borussia Dortmund, and the Gunners have recently acquired Sven Mislintat from the Bundesliga side as head of recruitment. Ex-BVB stars Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang also arrived in January.
Buvac is highly regarded, too. As noted by Pearce, in the past Buvac has been referred to as "the brain" due to his tactical acumen; he has worked with Klopp for 17 years and is thought to have played a crucial role in the development of the stylistic blueprint the German manager is renowned for.
Journalist Raphael Honigstein broke down the type of relationship the pair have shared in the past:
Arsenal are going into a summer of major uncertainty, with a period of transition inevitable having been under the stewardship of Wenger for so long. Regardless of who comes in and the pedigree they have, there's a massive job to do to restore Arsenal to one of the major forces in world football.
Having appointed Wenger from Japan in 1996, the Gunners have shown previously they can think outside the box when it comes to managerial recruitment. Buvac evidently has a sharp football mind, but stepping into such a high-pressure environment would be a massive leap for him.