Brighton and Hove Albion are set to appoint former Arsenal interim sporting director Jason Ayto as their own new sporting director, according to a report.
Earlier this week, Simon Jones reported for the Daily Mail that former Arsenal interim sporting director Jason Ayto was being lined up for a permanent job with Brighton and Hove Albion.
Jones wrote that Ayto had also been in contention for the sporting director role at Newcastle United, but Nottingham Forest’s Ross Wilson is set to take that job instead.
As a result, Ayto is ready to take over from David Weir at Brighton, with Weir confirming on Friday that he’ll be leaving the club.
Andy Naylor and James McNicholas report for The Athletic that Brighton are now set to make the appointment of Ayto, with the 40-year-old to start work in the next week.
Ayto had previously worked at Arsenal as a scout, then chief scout, then the club’s assistant sporting director, before taking on the top job on an interim basis following Edu Gaspar’s departure.
The highlight of Ayto’s time in charge was the progress he made on a deal to sign Martin Zubimendi, though fans were disappointed by the lack of incomings for Arsenal in the January transfer window.
Ayto came close to getting the Arsenal sporting director job on a permanent basis, but the Gunners opted instead to bring in the more experienced Andrea Berta.
That change has been a successful one for Arsenal so far, with Berta doing impressive business over the summer window. But Ayto was clearly highly rated internally in north London, and the interest from Newcastle and now Brighton emphasises the regard in which he’s held.