Arsenal have confirmed that Brazilian medic Bruno Mazziotti, has joined from Paris Saint-Germain.

In the midst of a backroom reshuffle, that has already seen Raül Sanllehí leave the club, along with the departure of Freddie Ljungberg, both in the summer and the appointments of Miguel Molina, Carlos Cuesta and Andreas Georgson, not to mention the retention of Gary O’Driscoll, who had been thought to be departing for Liverpool.

Mazzioti shares a close personal relationship with Arsenal’s Technical Director Edu, which gives an insight into why the Brazilian was appointed. Mazziotti will replace Jordan Reece, who is departing for Liverpool.

It was thought that former Arsenal physiotherapist, Colin Lewin would return to replace Reece, however, Edu changed his mind at the eleventh hour to appoint Mazziotti. In fact, following the departure of Arsène Wenger and the predicted appointment of Mikel Arteta, it was thought that Lewin would remain at the club, however, following Ivan Gazidis’ change of heart, Unai Emery was appointed instead and Lewin was subsequently let go as Emery brought in his own staff.

Mazziotti worked extensively with Edu at Corinthans and also with the Brazilian national side. Mazziotti gained a lot of international recognition after his work with Neymar was deemed pivotal in getting the superstar fit for the World Cup.

Following his work Neymar, it can come as no surprise that Mazziotti was seconded to French champions Paris Saint-Germain. However, despite Mazziotti’s reputation with the Brazilian national side, he has been let go as part of a backroom revamp with the French side, who are keen to decrease the number of injuries in the squad, though Arsenal fans should rest easy in this regard, as it is widely regarded that PSG’s Performance Manager Martin Buchheit, thought to be the chief culprit in this regard.

It was thought that Mazziotti would have started earlier in the season, given that his link to the Arsenal job has long been rumoured, however, Arsenal were unable to confirm the Brazilian’s arrival until 2021, amodst the COVID-19 pandemic and PSG’s own reluctance to let such an important member of their staff leave midway through the season, especially when pressure was noticeably mounting on manager Thomas Tuchel, who was recently sacked, likely allowing Mazziotti the chance to leave.

Though not quite the dip into the transfer market that Arsenal fans were expecting so early on, it is however, a very welcome addition to the Arsenal backroom staff.