Napoli's head of scouting Maurizio Micheli is reportedly in advanced talks to move to Arsenal to take up a new role with the Premier League side. New sporting director Andrea Berta is continuing to make changes behind the scenes in north London and is keen to bring in the man who signed Khvicha Kvaratskhelia for Napoli. The exciting winger has since been sold to Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth £59 million.
Arsenal set to land key Napoli scout
Berta has identified Micheli as a "key appointment" for his team and talks are continuing over a move, as reported by BBC Sport. Micheli is in his second stint with Napoli and is credited with bringing players such as Kvaratskhelia, Marek Hamsik and Kim Min-jae to the club. He has also worked in Serie A with Hellas Verona and Udinese and is widely regarded as one of the best talent spotters in Italy, having also discovered Ghana internationals Sulley Muntari and Asamoah Gyan.
AdvertisementAFPBerta getting busy at Arsenal
Berta arrived at Arsenal after over a decade in La Liga with Atletico Madrid, taking over from Edu at Emirates Stadium. The Italian helped bring the likes of Antoine Griezmann, Jan Oblak, Rodri and Joao Felix to the club and was part of an Atletico set-up that won two La Liga titles, the Copa del Rey and the Europa League.
Arsenal's new man has just overseen his first transfer window at Arsenal which saw the Gunners spend over £255 million ($345.7m) to refresh the squad. Viktor Gyokeres, Martin Zubimendi, Eberechi Eze, Noni Madueke, Cristhian Mosquera, Piero Hincapie, Kepa Arrizabalaga and Christian Norgaard all arrived as the north London side splashed the cash.
Mikel Arteta's side have gone on to enjoy a strong start to the Premier League season. The Gunners currently sit top of the Premier League table, four points clear of nearest challengers Manchester City, and are also in top spot in the Champions League standings.
Arsenal told Micheli is a 'human algorithm'
Micheli has been praised for his work in Serie A by former Stefano Caira. He has told fans what to expect from the scout: "I bow to the analysis of Maurizio Micheli, who, for me, is a guru in selecting and knowing players. There isn’t a single player Maurizio signs whose parents, boyfriends, and so on he doesn’t know. He’s a human algorithm, capable of implementing this strategy for years now."
Getty Images SportCrunch fixtures up next for Arsenal
Arsenal face a real test of their title credentials when domestic action resume after the international break. Arteta's team return against north London rivals Tottenham and then face Bayern Munich in the Champions League. The game pits the only two teams in the competition still with a 100 per cent record up against each other at the Emirates.
Arteta's side then face Enzo Maresca's Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on November 30th, and the results of those games may well offer an indicator of just how far the Gunners can go this season at home and abroad.
The Arsenal boss is expected to welcome several injured players back for those games, and he admits the break comes at a good time for his team.
“Now we reset with the international break, get the [international] players back nice and healthy, the ones that are not healthy make sure that they get healthy, and we go again,” he told reporters after seeing his team held to a draw by Sunderland last time out.
“We’ll look back at what we’ve done, take all of the positive things that we do, the things that we have the opportunity to improve as well and start to plan what is coming because it’s going to be very demanding.”