Arsenal "dream team" fell apart after Arteta toast and Kroenke wielded axe

Arsenal's former head of football Raul Sanllehi has expressed his regret at how his time in charge of the Premier League club ended.

Former Barcelona chief Sanllehi was appointed as Arsenal's head of football relations in February 2018, two months before Arsene Wenger's exit was announced. The administrator was promoted six months later to replace CEO Ivan Gazidis, who also departed, joining AC Milan.

Sanllehi was fired in August 2020, as Arsenal decided to streamline their operational team following the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. His responsibilities were absorbed by managing director Vinai Venkatesham, who became CEO after a decade of service.

Sanllehi claimed he assembled his "dream team" in December 2019 following the appointment of Mikel Arteta as manager. The rest of that unit included technical director Edu, head of football operations Huss Fahmy and academy manager Per Mertesacker.

Yet Sanllehi's dream became a nightmare in March 2020 when the onset of the pandemic caused Arsenal to make huge changes to their operational structure. He was forced to lay off 55 people before eventually losing his job five months later.

Sanllehi has since returned to football, becoming Real Zaragoza's director general in June 2021. Zaragoza currently play in the second tier of Spanish football. Speaking to The Athletic, Sanllehi was keen to discuss Zaragoza but did open up on his time at Arsenal.

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"I loved it at Arsenal. You cannot imagine - the people in the club, the history of the club," said Sanllehi. "I really felt I was at the top of the world there. I love the owners, the Kroenkes. But the last 10 months there were horrible. I had to lay off 55 people, without knowing I was the 56th."

Sanllehi added: "I don't feel betrayed by the Kroenkes. The Kroenkes had the LA Rams, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Rapids, and all of a sudden, all those teams could not play.

"You still had to pay the salaries. You did not have guaranteed broadcasting revenues. They entered into panic, but a logical panic, as the world entered into panic.

"Without Covid, I am sure I would still be there, as my relationship with the Kroenkes was great.

"It is funny now, but I remember in December 2019, I had dinner with the four guys: Mikel Arteta, Edu, Huss Fahmy and Per Mertesacker.

"On the toast, I said, 'Now, it is on us. Now it is exactly the model I asked for. If it does not work, we have no excuses'. That team for me was a dream team at that time. Then in March, everything just fell apart. It was sad."

Arsenal have strengthened since Sanllehi's departure by investing significantly in their squad. The likes of Ben White, Aaron Ramsdale, Fabio Vieira, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Gabriel Jesus, Takehiro Tomiyasu and Martin Odegaard have all joined the club in recent years.

The Gunners are top of the Premier League, one point ahead of champions Manchester City and rivals Tottenham. They face Spurs in their next fixture at home on October 1.

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