Arsenal face 'internal moaning' after Mikel Arteta agreement: 'I expected better'
Arsenal should have allowed more time to pass after announcing their new deal for manager Mikel Arteta before revealing their latest round of redundancies.
That is according to former Everton chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes that the Gunners have created a “bad look” for themselves with the timing of the two issues.
Arteta’s new deal was agreed earlier in October, and effectively coincided with the news that the club are planning to cut around 60 staff members from their team behind the scenes.
Wyness believes that while there is no direct correlation between the two decisions, it should have been handled better by the club.
Arteta suggested that the redundancies are necessary in order to improve and innovate the structure within the club, but it is a decision that has faced criticism.
Arsenal won the Premier League title last season and earned a hugely lucrative sum in the process, but that does not appear to be enough to prevent the cuts.
Arsenal compared to Man United after staff cuts
Everton’s former chief Wyness – who served as CEO at Goodison Park between 2004 and 2009 and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes that the timing surrounding Arsenal’s plan is more akin to something you would see from Manchester United.
The Red Devils have gained a reputation for being ruthless with their staff behind the scenes in recent years, but Wyness is adamant that he expected better from the Gunners.
Speaking on the latest edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, he explained how they should have handled the situation better.
“It is a bad look, and I think it could have been avoided. I think it was all about timing. Look, they've obviously been in discussions with Mikel and his team for quite a while,” Wyness said.
“They've obviously also been handling these redundancies and looking at the cost reductions for a while. So they've had time to think about this and to bring them out so close together. While they're not related, it's just a very bad look.
“There'll be a lot of moaning internally about the way it's done. And clubs exist very, very much on the staff. People don't understand just how valuable these people are within the clubs.
“We had this whole discussion about Man United and what a disastrous way they've handled it, and I must admit I would have expected a little bit better from Arsenal.
“Had been two or three months apart, the whole thing wouldn't have looked connected.”
Mikel Arteta deal equivalent to £100m signing
Wyness previously told Football Insider that Arteta’s deal is around the equivalent in a financial sense to Arsenal signing a new player for £100million.
The Spaniard’s new deal will keep him at the Emirates Stadium until the summer of 2030, and has also boosted his annual salary to the £25m mark.
Wyness pointed out that the amortisation cost would actually be the same as if Arsenal brought in a £100m star on a four-year deal, so won’t disrupt their SCR situation too much.
Arteta’s new salary has raised plenty of eyebrows, but Wyness believes it is just the start of the market for top managers “repricing” itself.