Arsenal was one of the teams that targeted Jude Bellingham when he broke through at Birmingham last season.
However, if it wasn’t for Edu, the Gunners would have secured his signing long before he would play over 30 games for the Championship side’s first team last season.
Bellingham was the top teenage transfer target from England in the last transfer window as the likes of Manchester United looked to sign him.
However, he ended up at Borussia Dortmund and now Tony Adams has revealed that Arsenal had the chance to sign him before he became widely known.
The former Arsenal player claimed that the Gunners had scouted him and their chief scout had virtually secured the deal for his transfer after watching the teenager play.
However, when Arsenal made Edu their new sporting director, he came with no experience of Premier League or European football and he decided not to pursue the move for the teenager.
Adams told Sky Sports News as quoted by Football London: “The chief scout was absolutely bowled over by Jude Bellingham & the great prospect that he is. The chief scout had the deal, kind of, done.
“The new sporting director, Edu, came in from Brazil & had no European experience no UK experience & he got lost.”
