According to the Daily Mail, Arsenal are closing in on a deal for Borussia Dortmund defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos, with Bild crediting the influence of Head of Recruitment Sven Mislintat after he held talks with the £17.5m player’s representatives.
The Gunners are shopping for a centre-back as Petr Mertesacker is retiring to become the club’s Head of Academy next season. The future of Shkodran Mustafi and Laurent Koscielny is also uncertain this summer, with the defensive pair having struggled for consistency of late. Koscielny turns 33 in September too.