Former Arsenal head of recruitment Sven Mislintat is set to return to football with German second-division side Fortuna Dusseldorf, according to a report.
On Friday afternoon, German outlet Bild reported that Fortuna Dusseldorf’s supervisory team had chosen ex-Arsenal head of recruitment Sven Mislintat to be their new sporting director.
At the time, the deal wasn’t 100% finalised, but there were no obstacles expected to delay the appointment on either side.
Bild added that Mislintat had also held talks with Dynamo Dresden, but he ultimately turned them down in favour of Fortuna Dusseldorf. Fortuna had already made one attempt to recruit Mislintat in 2016, but Borussia Dortmund wouldn’t let him go at the time.
Sky Sport Germany have since confirmed Bild’s report, writing that Fortuna’s current technical director Klaus Allofs is likely to leave the club prematurely at the beginning of next week, despite having a contract until 2026.
Mislintat has reportedly now accepted Fortuna’s offer, though the two parties will only complete the formal signatures after the team’s upcoming match against SV Elversberg on Sunday.
Once of Arsenal, Mislintat was most recently back working with Dortmund, signing a contract in 2024 that was meant to last until 2028. Yet after a reported power struggle, he left the club just months later this February.
That will sound familiar to Arsenal fans, who saw Mislintat arrive in late 2017 to much fanfare, only to be gone just a year later amid suggestions he was unhappy with Raul Sanllehi’s control over transfer dealings.
Mislintat was also called a “charming con man” by Ajax CEO Alex Kroes following a spell with the Dutch club, so these kinds of fall-outs have become commonplace for him.
It’s likely the incoming Fortuna sporting director will have more control at a relegation-battling second-division team, so they’ll hope it’s a better fit for him.