Arsenal are closing in on the capture of CSKA Moscow midfielder Aleksandr Golovin for £10m, reports the Daily Mirror.
The Gunners have already secured the services of Sead Kolasinac from Schalke 04 and are keen to get their summer business done early on.
The 21-year-old played a key role in CSKA’s second placed finish in the Russian Premier League last season, with his three goals and three assists helping him earn a WhoScored rating of 7.23.
Chelsea have previously been credited with an interest in Golovin but are now set to miss out on the youngster as Arsenal aim to splash the cash and improve accordingly.
However, a minor stumbling block could be that CSKA are hoping to keep Golovin on loan for the coming campaign, while Arsenal are willing to use the Russian in their Europa League campaign.
That being said, Golovin is under contract with the Russian outfit until 2021 and are under no pressure to sell one of their prized assets.
Really hoping this is just a rumour. While Golovin's per game tackling numbers this season have been pretty good, his interceptions as well as his quick transitional skills (dribbles and long range passes) aren't that great. I think Arsenal need more proven CDM recruits who, over a number of seasons, have proven themselves to be highly effective at ball recoveries and quickly transitioning the ball from defence to attack. For that reason, I'd much prefer to see Arsenal go after Gonalons (Lyon), Illarramendi (Real Sociedad) or Demme (RB Leipzig) as opposed to a largely untested Golovin.
@Waldo Don't worry, it's the ever-reliable Daily Mirror.