The sporting director of Premier League side Arsenal, Edu, has decided to leave the club.

Edu’s exit comes amid interest in him for a role with Evangelos Marinakis’ group of clubs.

The clubs include Nottingham Forest, Olympiacos, and Rio Ave – and, in the future, potentially a fourth club they are looking to buy in Europe.

However, it is unclear yet whether the Brazilian has agreed to join the group.

Sky Sports reports that Edu’s decision has taken Arsenal by surprise.

The sporting director had been away in Brazil on personal matters and arrived back late last week.

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The 46-year-old shares a strong bond with Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, with whom he has rebuilt Arsenal into title contenders.

In September, when the manager signed a new contract, Edu had outlined their new long-term ambitions. There had been no signs he was considering leaving his role.

Edu joined Arsenal as technical director in July 2019 before becoming the club’s first-ever sporting director in November 2022.

The former Gunners midfielder has been responsible for the signings of Martin Odegaard and Declan Rice, while he helped offload the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Mesut Ozil.

Since Edu arrived at the club, Arsenal have spent £867 million – only Chelsea and Manchester United have spent more in that period – and have won the FA Cup, while finishing as runners-up in the last two Premier League seasons.

The Star