Edu Gaspar has taken the transfer window for Arsenal to a level which has left his biggest critics clutching at straws to find something to hold against him. These typically boil down to perhaps the vague and warped reported wages of Kai Havertz, or the fact he’s had a vacation during the window or even that he’s enjoyed a cold pint with his family, as pictured on Instagram.
The reality is that the Brazilian is spearheading both a recruitment evolution and a drastic and ruthless improvement in the club’s sales department. On the side of incomings, the move for Kai Havertz is an ambitious and risky one backed by his colleague and the club’s manager Mikel Arteta.
The pair have an exceptional working relationship and have worked in tandem to plan and construct a group that has gone from eleventh in the league when they were brought together, to a title challenge in just over three years. Speaking to football.london Edu demonstrates a great passion for his work and was delighted with the progress of Jakub Kiwior in a conversation after the 2-0 win at Newcastle United simply saying, "He’s good, right?"
But it is the work that he has done this summer to negotiate a deal for Declan Rice which is in the final stages of discussions with West Ham. football.london understands a £105million total fee has been agreed upon for the England international and discussions over payment structure are ongoing.
Jurrien Timber is another player on the verge of completion. The title race somewhat collapsed in response to a double injury to William Saliba and Takehiro Tomiyasu in the Europa League aggregate defeat to Sporting CP.
Edu and the club have shown great learning from events during the season to correct these squad deficiencies and Timber certainly does that. The early deals for the likes of Cedric Soares, Willian, Pablo Mari and Alex Runar Runarsson feel like an age ago considering the moves made in recent summers.
READ MORE: Arsenal news and transfers LIVE: Declan Rice deal 'done', Romeo Lavia move, Granit Xhaka deal
Regarding outgoings, Granit Xhaka is expected to join Bayer Leverkusen in a deal worth in the region of €25million (£21.5million), a considerable improvement on the previously touted figure of £13million football.london understands. The price is more than half of what Arsenal paid for the then-23-year-old back in 2016.
The fee is sure to give a serious discount on the Rice deal for the Gunners and more could be coming soon. Some outlets have suggested the club have placed a £50million figure on Folarin Balogun which would, with Xhaka if achieved, mean more than half of their potential record signing would be covered by just two players.
Further outgoings are expected and this is where scrutiny could return for Edu if the deals are not, within reason, secured with enough benefit financially either now or in the future to the club. But there should be confidence based on the evidence of the recent past to believe it can and will be achieved.
Lastly, one cannot forget the brilliant work regarding the renewals of contracts. Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, Aaron Ramsdale, Gabriel Magalhaes, Eddie Nketiah and Emile Smith Rowe have all been renewed whilst there is an expectation of William Saliba and Reiss Nelson's contracts too.
Talks for Martin Odegaard and Ben White's renewals are also in the works football.london understands as the fear of losing top stars has become a thing of the past with Edu and Arteta. The list just keeps on going.
