Arsenal

Arsenal 'give green light' to 29-year-old's exit as Serie A switch to be finalised on Wednesday

By Ben Knapton, Senior Reporter

Published: June 18 2025 | 11:16

Last updated: June 18 2025 | 14:55

Arteta loses key ally as Arsenal 'give green light' to 29-year-old's exit

Arsenal reportedly give the green light to a 29-year-old's exit to a Serie A side as Mikel Arteta faces an unexpected summer shake-up.

Arsenal have supposedly given assistant coach Carlos Cuesta the green light to leave the club and become the new manager of Serie A outfit Parma.

The 29-year-old has been an integral member of Mikel Arteta's backroom team since joining the Gunners in 2020, just after the club triumphed in the 2019-20 FA Cup.

Together with Albert Stuivenberg, Inaki Cana, Nicolas Jover and Miguel Molina, Cuesta has helped oversee Arsenal's transformation from a mid-table team to consistent Premier League title challengers.

The former Atletico Madrid and Juventus youth team assistant penned a new deal at the Emirates earlier this year until 2027, but according to Fabrizio Romano, his move to Parma is now nearing completion.

The Italian journalist reports that Arsenal have approved Cuesta's switch to Italy, where the 1995-born coach will succeed Cristian Chivu, who replaced Simone Inzaghi at Inter Milan.

Cuesta is expected to touch down in Italy on Wednesday to finalise his move to Parma, who staved off relegation from Serie A last season with a 16th-placed finish, five points above the demotion zone.

Where does Cuesta's exit leave Arsenal and Arteta?

For such a young man to enjoy as much authority as Cuesta has at Arsenal, it was evident from the get-go that he would eventually forge his own career as a head coach.

The 29-year-old has always been spoken about in glowing terms by current and former Arsenal players, who can connect with him on a deeper level given their similar ages.

Cuesta's exit will deprive Arteta of one of his specialist one-to-one communicators, one who also possesses exceptional tactical knowledge, but Arsenal have survived major coaching shake-ups before.

Steve Round was formerly a fundamental part of Arteta's staff during the Gunners' ascent to a title-challenging team, and he departed with two years remaining on his contract in the summer of 2023, after which Arsenal quickly launched another charge for first place.

Cuesta no doubt deserves this splendid opportunity, and whether Arsenal decide to directly replace him or not, Arteta still has a competent four-strong support team of Stuivenberg, Molina, Cana and Jover moving forward.