Tomas Rosicky has opened up on the rumours linking him with the vacant Arsenal sporting director role.

The 44-year-old has been the sporting director at Sparta Prague since 2018 and has helped lead the Prague-based side to back-to-back Czechia First League championships, as well as back into the Champions League. This success has seen him tipped to become Edu's replacement, who left the role in November.

football.london understands that there are numerous candidates being considered for the highly important role, with current interim Jason Ayto among them. It's also been reported that Dan Ashworth, Andrea Berta, Roberto Olabe, and Thiago Scuro are also options.

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Rosicky, who made 170 appearances for Arsenal in the Premier League between 2006 and 2016, has now broken his silence on a potential return to Emirates Stadium. Speaking with Flashscore as part of an exclusive interview on the Livesport Daily podcast, Rosicky revealed Arsenal have not yet contacted him about the sporting director role.

''So the reality is simple," Rosicky said. "My connection with Arsenal is natural because I spent 10 years there, and when you spend 10 years somewhere you form a strong, very strong bond. So I have this strong bond with Arsenal and I have a strong bond with Sparta Prague. Those are the two clubs that I love football-wise because I have a warm relationship with them.

"I am honoured by the fact that I am even being considered by Arsenal's management, but I I can say that I don’t have any offer to go to Arsenal.'' He added: ''As I mentioned before, I’m aware that I’m on their radar or I figure in their considerations in some capacity, but I haven’t received any offer."

Rosicky also admitted he text Arteta last year ahead of Sparta signing Imanol Garcia, although the former Gunners midfielder said he does not regularly consult Arteta on players. He said: ''That's not the case either. We were good teammates, and we spent quite a bit of time together, but it's not like we're calling each other.

"Regarding Imanol’s transfer, not that I consulted him about the player, that's a little different story. But they have the same agent, who also represents Mikel. So at that time, we were in contact, we were sending some text messages, about how his agent takes pictures with me.

"It’s not like we are best friends, I think we're great colleagues and we had a great time together. We're always happy to see each other when there’s an opportunity.''

Ayto oversaw Arsenal's January transfer window as interim sporting director, although no new signings were made. A final decision on who will permanently replace Edu is set to be made in March with interviews being held next month.