Arsenal are set to add some much needed football expertise to theboardroom with the appointment of Pascal Cygan to a specially creatednew role.
The Frenchman, on the advice of Arsene Wenger, will be confirmed asthe club’s first Strategic Football Consultant. After adding
Josh Kroenke to the boardroom last year– the first step in reducing the average age of the directors – the 39year old former defender will bring another dose of youthful vitality tothe Arsenal set-up.
With question marks still over the manager’s intentions, and theboard’s ability to make properly informed decisions about thefootballing future of the club when Wenger does finally call it a day,the decision was taken to create a new role to bridge that knowledgegap.
Taking into account the suggestions made by fans groups like theArsenal Supporter’s Trust, Black Scarf Movement and Arsenal Need AnotherLeader, that they needed somebody who understood the club and wascognisant with the needs of the modern game, a three man shortlist wasfashioned after extensive discussion. The names put forward were PatrickVieira, Dennis Bergkamp and Cygan.
Arsenal, however, were reluctant to ‘poach’ either of the first twocandidates from their roles at Man City and Ajax respectively, due tothe compensation they’d have to pay, and plumped for Cygan instead.Despite playing a bit-part role in the team for most of his Arsenalcareer, Wenger was always impressed by his intelligent outlook on thegame.
After leaving the Gunners in 2006, he went to Spain to play forVillarreal (alongside Santi Cazorla and Robert Pires) and Cartagena,before retiring in 2011. Since then he’s been doing his coaching badges,and studying at some of Europe’s biggest clubs to gain insight into theway they’re run.
He spent time in Italy and Germany, and undertook a 3 month role atTurkish giants Fenerbache but was forced to cut short his stay there dueto an intense allergic reaction to a pesticide used on the grass attheir training ground.
Cygan was also recently spotted sitting alongside Ken Friar at arecent game at the Emirates, which led many to wonder if it was morethan just a social visit.
The Frenchman’s duties will include compiling a short-list ofmanagerial candidates for the board to consider in the wake of ArseneWenger’s admission he’d have no hand in that process.
As well as that he’ll be advising on general football matters,transfer policy and training ground improvements – one of which, on theinstruction of Stan Kroenke himself, is the installation of a state ofthe art cryo-homeopathic bath which the American believes can put an endto the repetitive muscle strains suffered by Arsenal players.
The appointment is set to be confirmed by the end of month.
http://news.arseblog.com/2014/03/former-invincible-to-join-arsenal-board/
