Arsenal have announced the tragic passing of their former chief scout, Steve Rowley, after a short illness.
Rowley played a key part in Arsenal's success under Arsene Wenger, spending over two decades in his role as chief scout before departing in 2017. A club statement read: "Everyone at the Club is deeply saddened to announce the passing of our former Chief Scout Steve Rowley after a short illness.
"Steve, 63, had been associated with the Club since January 1980, when he began a part-time role in our youth scouting operations in Essex. Notable early successes in the identification of talent - including Tony Adams and Ray Parlour - led to a full-time position during George Graham's time as manager.
"Upon his arrival in 1996, Arsène Wenger appointed Steve as our Chief Scout, a position he held until 2017. During four decades with the Club, Steve and his network of scouts were responsible for identifying and securing many players instrumental in on-pitch success for the Club.
"Our thoughts are with Steve’s family and friends at this time. Rest in peace, Steve."
Rowley spent over 35 years at the North London club and has had a long and fruitful partnership with Wenger during that time. The two enjoyed a strong working relationship and Rowley’s exit in late 2017 preceded that of the French boss by about six months as there was an overhaul behind the scenes at Arsenal. Rowley had apparently grown tired of being made a scapegoat for Arsenal’s transfer market failings which had coincided with the club dropping out of England's most successful teams.
Rowley previously explained in an interview with Arsenal fans blog Young Guns, when quizzed on how he helped unearth gems for Arsenal: “Well we know about the bigger names too of course, we knew about Messi when we knew about Cesc obviously because they were in the same team, but we couldn’t do anything about it because he is Argentine.
“Generally though, yes the prices are more competitive when they are relatively unknown. I think the gaffer likes the fact that they are not going to cost millions and millions, but I also think that what’s important to him is that it gives him more scope to develop the player through his own coaching methods. At the same time if we bring a 16-year-old in through our scouts, I fully expect him to be able to train with the first team and not look out of place. They have to be of a very, very high standard.”
Former Arsenal scout Francis Cagigao previously said: "I worked at such a top club under an outstanding leader in Arsene Wenger and also some brilliant people, such as Steve Rowley, Brian McDermott, Peter Clark. We had a fantastic team... there were years when we were pioneers in our field."
Rowley's departure in 2017 had followed on from that of the club's chief transfer negotiator Dick Law amid a wave of changes in North London. The exit of Rowley saw Ivan Gazidis take a more prominent role in the Gunners recruitment process alongside being a key figure behind the exit of Wenger and subsequent appointment of Unai Emery.
Gazidis had reportedly wanted to implement a modern analytical approach to Arsenal’s transfer policies but his style reportedly brought him into conflict with Wenger and other figures at the club. Gazidis did not last long at Arsenal after that and by the end of 2018 he too was on the move, as he joined Italian giants Milan where he remains the club’s Chief Executive.
