If you were to judge Andrea Berta on his public appearances alone, you might conclude that Arsenal’s new sporting director is the shy and reserved type. Berta prefers to work in the shadows, away from the cameras and dictaphones, and throughout his career, he has never shown much interest in building his public profile.
Indeed, when Berta was named best sporting director at the Globe Soccer Awards in 2019, his acceptance speech lasted only 55 seconds.
This is not to say, however, that the Italian is meek or timid. In fact, there is evidence to suggest quite the opposite. The Italian arrives in north London with a reputation as one of Europe’s most shrewd and calculating transfer operators, but he also seems to come with a certain tempestuousness.
A decade ago, for example, the referees in the tunnel of Atlético Madrid’s stadium made a report of an “unidentified person” addressing them “loudly and threateningly” after a match. It was Berta, who furiously told the officials that their decision-making was a “f------ disgrace”. After another game, in 2021, Berta was so disgusted by the officiating that he told the referee he would “never come here again”.
And when Atlético had their almighty fallout with Manchester City in 2022, Berta made sure he was involved in the brawl. In footage filmed from the stands, he was seen pushing a City staff member in the face.
‘One of the great architects’ of modern Atletico
Have Arsenal appointed a hothead? In the heat of battle, perhaps. Away from matches and in his transfer planning, though, it seems not. Berta was known in Spain for his analytical and measured approach during his 12 years at Atlético, where he rose to the rank of sporting director and worked closely with manager Diego Simeone.
Atlético won two league titles, the Europa League and two domestic cups during Berta’s time in Madrid. They also reached two Champions League finals. Sources in Spain describe Berta as “one of the great architects” of the modern Atlético and the man who – above all others – identified the club’s transfer targets.
It has been a fabulous period in Atlético’s history and Berta, 53, has unquestionably played a significant part. Among the players recruited under his watch are Antoine Griezmann, Rodri, Kieran Trippier, Luis Suárez and Julián Alvarez. He has also overseen some enormous sales, including Griezmann’s move to Barcelona, Rodri’s switch to City and Joao Felix’s transfer to Chelsea.
Berta is therefore accustomed to executing high-profile, big-money negotiations and transfers. And, crucially for Arsenal, he is capable of balancing the books. Atlético’s transfer dealings during Berta’s time there have been largely self-sustaining: since 2013-14, their net spend has been around £125 million. In the same period, Arsenal’s has been around £820 million.
From banking to football
Having left Atlético in January, Berta has now jumped back into the working world as the replacement for Edu Gaspar, who departed Arsenal in November. It is an alluring and challenging role for any football executive and it represents a thrilling next chapter for Berta, who began his professional life as a banker in Italy.
Berta’s rise has been remarkable, not least because he had no real experience of the football industry until his late twenties. Back then, football was just a hobby which he balanced with working in a bank in Brescia.
Such was Berta’s passion and knowledge, he soon caught the eye of AC Carpenedolo in the lower tiers of Italian football. He began a part-time role which included the identification and recruitment of talented young players. In Italy, the story goes that, when he decided to quit banking and go full-time with football, his mother was so worried that she was reduced to tears.
She need not have worried, because Berta was evidently made for the administrative side of this game. Diligent and obsessive, he rose up the Italian pyramid – moving to Parma in 2007, after Carpenedolo owner Tommaso Ghirardi had bought the club, and then Genoa in 2009. In a combined four full seasons at those two Italian sides, Berta oversaw an astonishing amount of business: around 250 deals (transfers and loans).
He will not be quite so busy at Arsenal, although that does not mean the job will be any easier. Mikel Arteta, the manager, needs quality rather than quantity, and Berta will be tasked with signing players who are capable of adding a new dimension to Arsenal’s squad.
In some cases, thanks in large part to the efforts of interim sporting director Jason Ayto, much of the groundwork has already been laid ahead of the summer transfer window. Arsenal’s interest in Real Sociedad midfielder Martín Zubimendi and Espanyol goalkeeper Joan García, for example, are long-standing.
RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko is among their striker targets (and is currently a more realistic option than Newcastle United’s Alexander Isak), and they are known to be admirers of Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams and Sporting forward Viktor Gyokeres. Berta will inherit these pursuits, although he will surely also arrive with ideas of his own.
Berta will not be all-powerful at Arsenal. It is thought that he will work alongside Arteta rather than directly above him. Executive vice-chair Tim Lewis, along with the club’s Kroenke owners, will make the final decisions.
These power dynamics probably suit Berta. Or, at least, they will not be unfamiliar to him. At Atlético he worked with a similarly charismatic manager in Simeone, and largely maintained a strong relationship with the feisty Argentine. Berta also experienced situations where long-serving CEO Miguel Ángel Gil Marín would take control of proceedings, such as when Gil Marín drove the 2019 move to sign Felix from Benfica for £113 million.
On the continent, Berta was previously dubbed “the Miracle Man” for his expertise in the market, but it was far from a one-man show at Atlético. The Italian was one voice rather than the dominant voice, and it required collaboration and delicacy to thrive in Madrid for as long as he did. At Arsenal, they will hope for more of the same.
