Arsenal have won the race to sign Martin Zubimendi after the Daily Mail’s Sami Mokbel revealed an agreement has virtually been closed with Real Sociedad to bring the Liverpool target to Emirates Stadium, with the timeline of the deal and the costs involved also coming to light.
The Spanish star was widely followed at Liverpool last summer as the Reds looked to make the Real Sociedad lad the first signing of the Arne Slot era on Merseyside. But he agreed to activate his €60m (£51m) exit clause and agreed to no-public terms with the player relating to the replacement, an 11-hour centre-back replacement caused the move to fail.
However, with Zubimendi remaining with his club for the season, the hypothesis about his long career has more back in recent weeks amid claims that he remains on the Reds’ radar, as they track Manchester City as they look to update ACL injury victim Rodri.
But Mokbel, writing for the Daily Mail, claims both Premier League sides have now been beaten to the punch by Arsenal, who have agreed a deal with Sociedad for his signing.
He writes that Arsenal have moved to trigger his £51m exit clause, and with negotiations now at an advanced stage, sources have indicated that the deal is virtually completed.
He affirms that the chief of the Gunners, Mikel Arteta, sought that the Zubimfinishi movement was done now, but was forced to leave him in the background, and the bosses of society made clear the player that although they did not want or not They could get in their way. Everyone would prefer the movement to materialize at the end of the season. As a result, Zubimfinishi agreed to fulfill this desire.
News of Zubimendi’s agreement to join Arsenal was quickly backed up by both Fabrizio Romano and David Ornstein.
Transfer journalist Romano posted on his , as revealed via @Samimokbel81_dm. The ultimate key Ultimate key steps are still required.
This was temporarily supported through David Ornstein, who also took over control of #AFC run on 25-year-old midfielder next summer for abundant era + long-term prosecution revived Mikel Merino @Theathleticfc recruitment procedure after @samimokbel81_dm’
Despite Arsenal’s now evident desire to sign a new striker this month following Gabriel Jesus’ serious ACL injury, Arteta had also looked to strengthen his midfield features during the second part of the season.
And with his interest in Zubimendi already for some seasons, it turns out that Artata already has his man.
The move ends a long saga in which Zubimendi was strongly linked to a move to the Premier League.
At the time of his failed move to Anfield, he reported that the 25-year-old Euro 2024 winner was in no condition to leave his hometown team and the club he left as a child.
Since then, he has been asked several times if he regrets this resolution that rejected the slot machine and the company, to which he responded to the newspaper El Diario Vasco: “I went on vacation and it took me by surprise. This is nothing I planned. I reacted when the scenario arose.
“It was an uncomfortable time for me but I weighed the pros and cons and concluded that the best option was to stay.
“I don’t believe in ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ opportunities. If you’re good and want to achieve something, it will come to you. There’s no need to rush.
“I looked at my personal progression, who I am, and the club’s project. I stayed because I knew this season would be important for me in the team, and I still had steps to take. It wasn’t that hard of a decision. There were many reasons for my decision, but I was selfish and thought about what was best for me – and that was staying.”
Arteta has not yet commented on the statements that an agreement is concluded for Zubimendi, but admitted that he waited for his team after the launch of the FA Cup on Sunday opposed to Manchester United.
“We are actively looking for the team in the market. It has been so from day one.
“It would be naive not to do that. This is an opportunity for the team. We are looking. We try. Let’s see what we can do.
Meanwhile, the Gunners remain more determined than ever to sign a new striker this month after a more serious injury than expected in Gabriel Jesus, and after the gunners have noticed a shameless opening for Dusan Vlahovic Fail.
And with Ornstein showing that Jesus is ‘now set for a long spell through a suspected anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture, it’s his left knee rather than his right, which he has surgery on in 2022’ – Arteta has stepped up his plans to identify a replacement.
However, his opening technique for Juventus star Vlahovic failed, the Bianconeri Award has been revealed.
More ambitiously, The Independent’s Miguel Delaney claims the Gunners could look to reignite their plans to sign Viktor Gyokeres this month.
Elsewhere, Arteta has seen a late move to beat Manchester United to the signing of a Paraguayan starlet fail, with the teenage star now set to finalise his move to Old Trafford.