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Andrea Berta: Profiling The New Arsenal Sporting Director And His 6 Best Signings

07 Apr, 2025
Andrea Berta: Profiling The New Arsenal Sporting Director And His 6 Best Signings

A decade ago, many football fans  would have been unsure exactly what the role of a modern sporting director involves (particularly in England). However, this job has become increasingly common within the professional game, and there is now a widespread understanding of how important these figures are when it comes to overseeing signings and sales, working closely with coaches, and leading a coherent and effective football operation.

Given the increased profile enjoyed by many directors of football today, it's no surprise that when elite-level clubs make a change to this aspect of their set-up, it becomes newsworthy. The recent appointment of Italian director Andrea Berta as Arsenal's brand new sporting director has got many Premier League fans wondering what the new man's credentials are. That's why this article will be dedicated to exploring who Berta is and detailing the best transfers he's overseen during his career. But before we get into that, let's quickly sketch out why Arsenal were left with a sporting director vacancy in the first place.

 

Why Did Edu Leave Arsenal?

Last autumn, the news broke that well-established Arsenal sporting director Edu was set to leave the club after five years at the helm. Over that time, Edu had a major impact on the fabric of the club, appointing Mikel Arteta as head coach and signing a raft of influential players including Gabriel Martinelli, William Saliba, Declan Rice, and Martin Odegaard.

When he came into the fold, Edu was a fairly unknown technical director, but he's more than proven his worth during the Gunners' rise towards the summit of the Premier League, and played a crucial role in the North London outfit challenging in the UEFA Champions League once again.

This positive work ultimately made Edu hot property, and Arsenal were unable to hold onto him. In November 2024, news emerged that Edu would leave the Gunners in favour of a new role working for Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis as he looks to expand his multi-club ownership set-up. The billionaire business tycoon owns Olympiacos and Rio Ave as well as Premier League high-flyers Forest, and it's thought that Edu's job will revolve around growing this network of clubs across Europe and beyond.

Over the last few months Edu has been serving a period of gardening leave, with assistant sporting director Jason Ayto filling in temporarily while the search for a new permanent executive went on. Now that search is over, with the experienced Andrea Berta joining Arsenal in March 2025.

Who Is Andrea Berta?

When Arsenal started scouting out their Edu replacement, Berta soon emerged as a leading candidate. As Atletico Madrid's sporting director, the 53-year-old spearheaded one of the most successful periods in the La Liga club's history, before departing in January (leaving him free to take up the Arsenal post). He's widely viewed as one of Europe's best football directors, but how did he get to this position?

Born and raised in Brescia, in the northern Italian region of Lombardy, Andrea Berta's early career was in banking. However, he was persuaded to change course in 2006, when local businessman Tommaso Ghirardi convinced him to join lower-league outfit Carpenedolo as sporting director. Working in a small town with a population of only 12,000, he quickly stood out as a skilled operator, helping guide the club to the top of Serie C2 and ultimately being poached by a higher-level club. 

Berta joined Parma in 2007 and after suffering Serie A relegation in his first season, he pulled the historic club back to the top flight in his second campaign before joining Genoa in 2009. Here he was responsible for some top-notch signings, with his record in the transfer market causing La Liga giants Atletico Madrid to come calling in 2013. First, Berta headed up international scouting at Atletico, before making a step up to technical director.

His success in this latter role — leading the Madrid underdogs to their first league title in 18 years in 2013/14 and consistently achieving success in the Champions League in subsequent years, before following up that initial title with a second La Liga triumph in 2020/21 — led to the revered director getting the nickname "Milagroso Berta", meaning "Miraculous Berta". When you dig into his transfer dealings, you start to realise why. 

After 12 years working with Diego Simeone, he left to embark on a new challenge in early 2025, telling reporters "I am thrilled to be joining Arsenal in what is a hugely exciting period for the club. I have watched with great interest the way Arsenal has evolved in recent years and I have admired the hard work that has gone into re-establishing the club as a major force in European football with a passionate following around the world."

Andrea Berta Signings: 6 Of The Best

Berta's time at Atletico Madrid was defined by some excellent transfer market activity. While he also worked his magic at Parma and Genoa, we think all six of his best-ever signings were made at his former La Liga side.

#1. Jan Oblak

For the last decade, Slovenian Number 1 Jan Oblak has been widely regarded as one of the world's best goalkeepers, his lightning-quick reflexes and imposing sense of authority making him an ever-present between the sticks for Atletico under Diego Simeone.

The eight-time Slovenian Footballer of the Year was only 21 years old when Madrid paid Benfica €16 million for him, making him the most expensive goalkeeper in the history of the Spanish top flight. However, that price tag was well worth it; he has kept an astonishing 221 clean sheets in 484 appearances for the club, conceding just 405 goals in that time (a ratio of 0.83 goals conceded per game).

#2. Rodri

Real Madrid may have kicked up a fuss when Rodri won the 2024 Ballon d'Or, but the Spain international more than deserved this accolade for his major contribution to a record-breaking Premier League title win for Manchester City and a hugely impressive European Championship triumph for his country. Rodri is without doubt one of the world's greatest midfielders, and Andrea Berta was one of the first people to spot his potential, signing him from Villareal in 2017 for €20m before making a significant profit just two years later when City paid around £62m for the central midfielder.

#3. Antoine Griezmann

It's hard to argue that Berta's best signing of all is Antoine Griezmann. The French World Cup winner has had a dazzling career and was consistently regarded as one of Europe's premier playmakers throughout the 2010s and early 2020s.

When Berta plucked Griezmann from Real Sociedad in 2014 he cost just €30m, but his performances domestically and in Europe allowed Atletico to make a whopping £64m profit on him, selling him to Barcelona for a huge fee of £108 million in 2019. Incredibly for his seller club, that Barca move went so badly that Atleti were able to bring Griezmann back for a fraction of the price, meaning Berta has led two hugely successful signings of the French forward.

#4. Luis Suarez

Uruguay legend Luis Suarez has shone in every league he's played in, but he's had most success in La Liga, wreaking havoc amongst opposition defenders during a hugely successful period at Barcelona before joining Atletico Madrid in 2020 and stamping his name firmly in the club's history books.

Suarez wasn't at Atletico for long but he made a huge impact, playing an integral role in their 2020/21 La Liga title win and ending both his seasons at the club as their top goalscorer. Incredibly, Berta acquired Suarez's services for just £5.5m after the Uruguayan fell out of favour with Barca boss Ronald Koeman. It was a tidy piece of business that paid dividends.

#5. Julian Alvarez

One of Berta's final signings as Atletico's sporting director saw him splash a massive £82m on World Cup-winning Argentina striker Julian Alvarez, whose displays for club and country in recent seasons have allowed him to win virtually all there is to win as a footballer despite being just 25 years old. At the time of writing, Alvarez has already registered 23 goals and five assists in 46 games for his new club, a seriously impressive start to life in Spain that he's likely to continue building on in the coming years.

#6. Stefan Savic

He might not be as glamorous a name as some of the others on this list, but Montenegrin centre-back Stefan Savic has played a huge role in Atletico Madrid's recent success. Signed from Serie A side Fiorentina for just €12m in 2015, he was a rock at the back during his nine years at the club, racking up 297 appearances, winning La Liga and the Europa League and becoming the first player from Montenegro to appear in a Champions League final in the 21st century.

Andrea Berta Signings: A Few That Didn't Work Out

There are far more hits than misses when it comes to Berta's career signings, but a few transfers he's been involved with have ended badly. Joao Felix was Atletico Madrid's record signing when they splashed an enormous £113m on him in 2019, making him the fourth-most expensive player in history. But the Portuguese attacker failed to see eye-to-eye with Diego Simeone, and was viewed by the manager as a luxury player unable to do the legwork required to succeed. He's spent the last few years struggling for gametime and was eventually sold to Chelsea at a huge loss last summer.

A similarly disappointing Berta signing (although one who cost significantly less money) was Thomas Lemar. Atletico dropped £58m on the French winger after he impressed at Monaco alongside starlets like Kylian Mbappe, but he has consistently struggled to replicate that form in La Liga, with only 29 goal contributions in a total of 189 games for the Madrid outfit.

At Arsenal, Berta will be hoping he can replicate the successful signings of Rodri, Griezmann, Oblak, and co; given this record, there's no reason he can't accomplish great things with the Gunners. If you'd like to find out more about another influential modern sporting director, why not check out our guide to the career of Dan Ashworth, the highly experienced former Manchester United, Newcastle United, and Brighton & Hove Albion sporting director.

 

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