Monchi Says He Hasn't 'Decided' on His Next Club After Roma Exit
Monchi isn't ready to discuss his next move after leaving AS Roma on Friday, even though the former Sevilla sporting director continues to be linked with joining Arsenal.
The Spaniard kept his cards close to his chest during an interview with Pagine Romaniste (h/t Fabrizio Romano of the Guardian):
TOP NEWS
Madrid Fines Players $590K 😲
'Mbappé Out' Petition Gaining Steam 😳
Star-Studded World Cup Ad 🤩
Monchi spoke after bringing a brief and ill-fated tenure in the Italian capital to an end:
Walking away from Roma immediately sparked speculation Monchi will be joining the Gunners sooner rather than later. The Sun's Mark Irwin reported Monchi and Arsenal have agreed a three-year contract for him to become technical director after a "personal recommendation" from head coach Unai Emery.
Monchi's positive history with Emery is a major factor in the north London club's interest. The pair helped Sevilla win the UEFA Europa League three seasons running.
The former goalkepper was also in charge when the Spanish outfit won the same trophy twice on the watch of Juande Ramos. Such a decorated spell enhanced Monchi's reputation as one of the most astute squad-builders on the continent.
He moved to Serie A in 2017, but results were mixed. The Daily Telegraph's Sam Dean noted how the 50-year-old recently "apologised after an altercation with Roma fans at the airport as the team returned from their Champions League defeat at Porto."
Some Roma supporters were critical of Roma's recruitment policy, despite the team's progression to the UEFA Champions League semi-finals last season. The run came under manager Eusebio Di Francesco, who left Roma a day earlier than Monchi, per the club's official website.
While Monchi didn't please everybody, he did bring plenty of promising young talent to the Stadio Olimpico, including Justin Kluivert, Cengiz Under and Nicolo Zaniolo.
Those successes rate alongside the haul of match-winners Monchi unearthed while at Sevilla. He acquired the likes of Carlos Bacca, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Dani Alves and Ivan Rakitic on the cheap.
Arsenal need a successful recruitment model based on spending modest fees on burgeoning talents. It's the only way to compete amid a loss of revenue caused by missing out on Champions League football for the past two seasons.
Emery faces an uphill battle getting his squad back into Europe's top tournament. The Gunners are fifth in the Premier League and a point behind in-form Manchester United, who visit the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
Arsenal are also just a point above Chelsea, who have a game in hand on their London rivals. It means Emery's men are likely outsiders in the race to finish fourth.
A Champions League return could also be ensured if Emery adds to the three Europa League trophies he won in Seville. However, Thursday's 3-1 defeat away to Rennes in the first leg of the last 16 has raised serious doubts about Arsenal's hopes of progressing.
It's easy to ask what, if any, improvement has been made since Arsene Wenger stepped down as manager last year.
Emery needs help, which he was supposed to get from a power-sharing structure above him comprising Ivan Gazidis, Raul Sanllehi and Sven Mislintat. The latter was named head of recruitment after a much-lauded spell at Borussia Dortmund, but he has since left Arsenal. Gazidis has also departed for AC Milan.
An obvious recruitment pattern emerged during Mislintat's short stay, one based on mining the Bundesliga. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Bernd Leno all arrived from the German top flight.
Signing Monchi and having him work with Emery and Sanllehi would put a heavy Spanish focus on the way Arsenal are run and how the squad is refreshed. Whether Monchi can rediscover the magic touch he had at Sevilla, where expectations are lower than at the Emirates Stadium, will determine the success of the Emery era.
