Andrea Berta's Pile of Tasks, Arsenal's New Sporting Director

It was not in vain that Arsenal spent approximately the last five months searching for a new sporting director. They succeeded in securing one of the prominent figures in the world of club management, Andrea Berta. The 53-year-old Italian man has an outstanding career history in building championship-winning teams.

Arsenal officially announced Edu Gaspar's replacement on Sunday (30/3/2025) evening WIB. Berta, former Atletico Madrid technical and sporting director (2013-2025), was chosen after a long selection process. "I am very happy to be joining Arsenal at such an exciting time for the club," Berta told Arsenal.com.

"I have observed how Arsenal has developed over the past few years. I admire the hard work that has been done to rebuild the club as a major force in Europe with passionate fans around the world. I want to play a role in creating success in the future," he continued.

The position of sporting director for "The Cannon" had been vacant since early November 2024, following Gaspar's resignation. The selection process was quite protracted. They even went through an entire transfer window, during the winter, without a sporting director. This resulted in the failure to bring in a single player during the January transfer market.

The long process can be forgiven with the arrival of Berta. As is known, he has been one of the main pillars of Atletico's success for more than the past decade. During his era, Atletico successfully won the Spanish League in the 2013-2014 and 2020-2021 seasons, as well as the 2018 Europa League, and reached the Champions League final twice.

The achievement is highly remarkable as Atletico had to compete with two Spanish giants, Barcelona and Real Madrid. The selection process also involved other prominent figures, such as Roberto Olabe, who serves as the sporting director of Real Sociedad, and Tomas Rosicky, a former Arsenal player.

"Everyone who understands football surely knows that Andrea is an impressive figure. He possesses extensive knowledge of the game, an excellent track record, a strong network, and a passion for building a championship team. Andrea will be a significant addition to our club," said Arsenal Director Josh Kroenke.

The main task of a sports director is always related to player acquisitions. This aspect is one of Berta's strengths. He is able to identify potential players and negotiate effectively. Some of the names highlighted in his portfolio include Antoine Griezmann, Diogo Jota, Jan Oblak, Matheus Cunha, and Rodri.

The best business strategy is shown in the Griezmann transaction. Atletico brought Griezmann from Real Sociedad for 30 million euros in 2014, then sold him to Barcelona for 120 million euros in 2019. Atetico, after borrowing Griezmann for two seasons, bought the player back for 22 million euros in 2023.

As manager Mikel Arteta said, Arsenal are already in the fourth of five phases to become a successful team. Gaspar worked well during 2019-2024 by returning Arsenal from a mediocre team to the top. The youth signing program was successful, but they have not been able to win the title.

Berta's task may not be more complex than Gaspar's starting a project from scratch, but it is much harder. He must find the missing pieces to transform Arsenal from title contenders to champions. The signings must be right and add value to an already mature team.

According to The Athletic, the new sporting director's top priority is to find a world-class centre-forward in the summer. That position has always been Arsenal's biggest hole under Arteta. The Gunners' main striker is currently Kai Havertz, a player who was brought in to fill the midfield position.

Berta is known as someone who is not afraid to spend big money, as long as it is logical from the club's financial side and the quality of the players. The proof is last summer, Atletico brought in Argentine national team striker Julian Alvarez for 75 million euros. Alvarez immediately made a big impact in his first season.

The next priority is filling the void in the anchor midfield position. Jorginho and Thomas Partey are out of contract in the summer. There is no sign of contract extensions so far. This means Arsenal could potentially lose both a core player and a backup in that position.

Another important task for Berta is to bring in a new goalkeeper and winger. Two loanees, Neto (goalkeeper) and Raheem Sterling (winger), will return to their original clubs in the summer. Especially for the wings, Arsenal need a classy player who can trigger competition with Gabriel Martinelli.

The final priority, Berta needs to extend the contracts of star players who have two years left, namely Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Magalhaes, and William Saliba. They certainly don't want to end up like Liverpool who are rumored to lose world-class players like Trent-Alexander Arnold for free in the summer.

Berta is certainly not a perfect figure. He has also made big mistakes in player transfers. One of them was when Atletico brought in Joao Felix for 127 million euros. The player did not develop as expected and was eventually sold for less than half the purchase price.

However, Arsenal have no choice but to take the risk. They will be deprived of success and stuck in stagnation if they play it safe. The fans' patience is running out for Arteta. The manager is in his fifth full season and has yet to achieve his target of winning the Premier League.

Despite all the tasks that await, Berta needs to first put his head together with Arteta. Because, communication is the key to the success of Arteta and Gaspar in building the initial foundation of Arsenal's long-term project. Now it's Arteta and Berta's turn to finish the project. (AP/REUTERS)