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Arsenal agree deal to sign 22-year-old star as Arteta closes-in on second signing

By on August 18, 2020

Gabriel-Magalhaes

According to the Daily Mail, Arsenal have agreed a £22m deal with Lille to sign Gabriel Magalhaes and the centre-back looks set to become Mikel Arteta’s second major signing of the summer.

Arsenal confirmed the signing of Willian last week with the attacker arriving on a free transfer from Chelsea but Arteta knows sorting out his defence is also a priority this summer as we were woeful at the back for much of last season.

A new central defender is on the agenda as Sokratis, Rob Holding, Shkodran Mustafi and David Luiz have all been liabilities at times so the boss needs a top class centre-back to form a long-term partnership alongside William Saliba.

Gabriel has been strongly linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium this summer and the Independent reported last week that Arsenal were in talks with Lille trying to thrash out a deal for the 22-year-old.

It appears those talks have gone well as the Daily Mail claims today that Arsenal have now agreed a £22m deal with the Ligue 1 outfit to sign Gabriel despite rival interest from the likes of Napoli and Manchester United.

The newspaper says we’ve ‘won the race’ to sign the highly-rated centre-back after getting a deal agreed so it looks like Gabriel is set to become Arsenal’s second major signing of the summer transfer window.

The Brazilian U20 international has forged a reputation as one of the best defenders in French football since joining Lille three years ago and was named in the L’Equipe ‘team of the season’ after putting-in some excellent performances last campaign.

If these reports are accurate, Gabriel will be an exciting addition to the squad and with Saliba also on the books, Arsenal have two huge centre-back prospects who have the potential to form a rock solid partnership over the coming years.

Let’s hope for some concrete news over the next couple of days but if we do sign Gabriel then I’d expect to see at least one of Sokratis, Holding and Mustafi to leave this summer as we’ll need to balance the books.