LONDON: Premier League club Arsenal are close to hiring former Paris Saint-Germain coach Unai Emery as their new manager to succeed Arsene Wenger, according to a BBC report.
Emery has emerged as the unanimous choice after a recruitment process, despite Manchester City assistant manager and former Gunners captain Mikel Arteta being a strong contender earlier for the post.
The 46-year-old Emery is available following his stint with PSG, where he won one Ligue one title and four domestic cups in two seasons. He was also the manager of Sevilla, when the Spanish club won a hat-trick of Europa League titles between 2014 and 2016.
The Spaniard isn’t fluent in English but the language barrier isn’t considered to an issue by Arsenal. An announcement and news conference on his appointment is expected any time this week.
The recruitment process was conducted by Arsenal chief executive Ivan Gazidis, head of football relations Raul Sanllehi and head of recruitment Sven Mislintat. However, the final decision will lie in the hands of the club’s majority shareholder and owner, Stan Kroenke, BBC reports.
- Log in to post comments