Why fiery new Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta will not be a popular appointment at Man City – explained

Arsenal's appointment of Andrea Berta as their new sporting director will not go down well at Manchester City.

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Berta is Arsenal's new sporting directorItalian is not shy of controversyHas history with Manchester CityFollow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?

Berta replaces Edu at the Emirates Stadium, having been chief at Atletico Madrid between 2017 and 2025. He will be charged with boosting Arsenal's title hopes, but that is not the only reason there will be eyebrows raised in Manchester.

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The controversy stems back to 2022, when tempers flared at the end of the Champions League quarter-final between Atletico and City. Berta was filmed taking part in the scrap on the pitch, appearing to shove a member of the City staff in the face.

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Berta had done plenty of work with City both before and after that incident. He sold Rodri to the current Premier League champions back in 2019 and bought Julian Alvarez from them last summer for Atletico.

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Berta's work to bring the title to the Emirates will kick off properly this summer, when he will be tasked with improving Mikel Arteta's squad enough to compete next season.