Top scout axed as Arsenal chop 55
ARSENAL’S famed global scout Francis Cagigao — the man who discovered Cesc Fabregas — is set for the sack as part of the club’s redundancy cull. Just days after their euphoric FA Cup final victory over Chelsea, the Gunners confirmed that 55 staff would lose their jobs as part of a restructuring following the
Covid-19 pandemic.
Sportsmail understands among those to have been informed they are being let go is Cagigao, 51, who has played a key role in the club’s international recruitment for more than a decade. He recommended Arsenal sign Fabregas from the Barcelona academy and was behind moves for striker Gabriel Martinelli last year and Hector Bellerin in 2011. Arsenal have also told head of UK scouting Peter Clark and recruitment specialist
Brian McDermott that they will lose their positions — though redundancies are in a consultation period and unconfirmed.
The Gunners have moved more towards agent-led recruitment in recent seasons, a likely reason behind the restructuring of their scouting set-up and the removal of Cagigao (below).
Arsenal have a limited budget this summer and their spending will be under the microscope given yesterday’s development.
Atletico Madrid midfielder Thomas Partey and free-agent winger Willian are among the club’s targets.
Arsenal decided against furloughing staff during the Covid-19 crisis but the majority of players agreed to pay cuts to help the club through the pandemic. Head of football Raul Sanllehi, and managing director Vinai Venkatesham confirmed the news in a statement, which read: ‘Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic we have been working hard to ensure that Arsenal Football Club emerges in a robust and strong position for the future.
‘Revenue from broadcasters, match-day and commercial activities have all been hit severely and these impacts will continue into at least the 2020-21 season.
‘The pandemic represents one of the most challenging periods in our 134-year history and we have responded promptly by implementing wide- ranging measures to reduce our costs.
‘Our players, senior football staff and executive team have volunteered pay cuts. We have also received significant financial support from our owners, Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, in terms of refinancing our stadium debt.
‘These steps have all reduced the impact of the pandemic on the club and have helped us to maintain investment in the team. This will continue to be a key priority.
‘It is now clear we will be facing more significant and longer-lasting reductions in our revenue than we all hoped. Current indications are that we will not have fans back at Emirates Stadium for the start of next season and fans will only be able to return in limited numbers after that. ‘The global economic projections are also very negative. ‘This will impact the disposable income of our fans, the money corporate clients have to spend on hospitality and sponsorship, and the ability for broadcasters to invest in television rights. ‘We all hope there will be no second wave (of the virus) but we also need to accept that is one of the many uncertainties ahead of us and plan accordingly. With the expected reduction of income in mind, it is now clear that we must reduce our costs further to enable us to continue to invest in the team.
‘Our aim has been to protect the jobs and base salaries of our people for as long as we possibly can.
‘Unfortunately, we have come to the point where we are proposing 55 redundancies.
‘We do not make these proposals lightly and have looked at every aspect of the club and our expenditure before reaching this point. We are now entering the required 30- day consultation period on these proposals.
‘We know this is upsetting and difficult for our dedicated staff and our focus is on managing this as sensitively as possible.’