ARSENAL scouts who discovered a string of top, young stars have been booted out by EMAIL as bean-counters at The Emirates get tough amid the club’s biggest ever financial crisis.
The TEN senior spies – with decades of loyal service – who found Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith-Rowe, Ashley Niles-Maitland and Reiss Nelson, have been axed shortly after youth recruiters got the bullet.
They were told that their contracts will not be renewed in June, claim the Mirror.
ARSENAL NEWS LIVE: Follow for the latest Gunners news
Earlier in the season, the Gunners sacked former head of youth recruitment Steve Morrow as part of an academy re-structure which saw EIGHT STAFF go.
The Gunners‘ crippling economic disaster has been compounded by the coronavirus with the loss of huge revenue from gate receipts of home matches, plus matchday merchandise, booze and food sales.
But it is the part-time scouts – thought to be on relatively moderate wages – who will surely question the decision to hand Mesut Ozil his £350,000-a-week deal in January 2018.
So far he has picked up over £44million in wages since the ink dried on that crazy deal.
Fans will surely ask where their next academy star will come from with so few spies watching out for the next Ashley Cole or Tony Adams.
Saka has made his first-team breakthrough this term and the club have high hopes for him.
Nelson is another huge star after his successful spell in Germany.
The North Londoners also received around £50million for academy products last summer, following Alex Iwobi and Krystian Bielik’s moves to Everton and Derby County respectively.
Arsenal were already in trouble after the construction of the Emirates ran well over budget before its completion in 2006.
Major signings were put on hold and the Gunners have never really recovered, failing to win a single Premier League title since 2004.
Their financial situation had been hit dramatically by the loss of Champions League football and the millions of TV revenue that comes with it.
They have not qualified for European football’s premier competition since 2017.
They have reportedly lost £35m each year they have missed out on Champions League football.
This led to Gunners legendary boss Arsene Wenger being axed in 2018, despite success in England’s domestic cup competitions.
And now the loss of revenue from the THREE MONTHS without any Premier League football since the coronavirus shutdown has become the last straw.
Sadly it is the men on the bottom rung of the Gunners’ financial ladder who have been hit.
Some have put in decades’ worth of service – only to get a month’s pay in way of a pay-off, it has been reported.
————————-
By: Alan Scott
Title: Arsenal sack loyal senior scouts, including one who found Bukayo Saka, after being hit hard by coronavirus
Sourced From: www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/premierleague/11803475/arsenal-sack-scouts-email-saka/
Published Date: Sun, 07 Jun 2020 11:16:48 +0000