Arsenal’s hopes of hiring Monchi as their technical director have suffered a setback after Sevilla made a move to bring the Spaniard back to the club where he made his name.
Monchi is considering his options after leaving Roma this month and contacts remain open with Arsenal. Unai Emery is desperate to convince the 50-year-old to join him after they enjoyed a highly successful partnership at Sevilla.
Monchi worked as the director of football at Sevilla for 17 years until 2017 and was in that role when Emery coached the team to three consecutive Europa League titles. He also spent his playing career at Sevilla, who hope he will be tempted by the opportunity to return to where he considers home.
Monchi lasted less than two years at Roma and his transfer dealings were mixed at best but his record at Sevilla was impressive. He signed players such as Dani Alves, Júlio Baptista and Seydou Keita and sold them for huge profit. He also sold the former youth players Sergio Ramos, José Antonio Reyes and Jesús Navas for almost €75m.
Arsenal want Monchi to oversee the technical side and replace Sven Mislintat, who left as the head of recruitment in February.
