Arsenal ‘complete’ £55m signing as Arteta drops bombshells on two other moves

Arsenal have finalised the £55m signing of Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa, while Mikel Arteta has delivered emphatic updates on two other Gunners moves.

Arsenal will enter the new campaign as heavy favourites to retain their Premier League title. And if the Gunners keep making impactful and readymade signings as they are, there’ll be no stopping Arteta’s men.

Arsenal landed Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle to the tune of £75m. The Brazilian is in the prime of his career aged 28 and over the past few seasons, has been one of the Premier League’s best midfielders.

It’s a similar story with Konsa who is also 28. He’s been one of the EPL’s top defenders for many a year, and has finally started to receive the recognition he deserves at international level with England.

And according to trusted reporter, David Ornstein, Arsenal have now completed Konsa’s signing after the player passed a medical.

Arsenal complete Ezri Konsa signing for £55m package

Reporting for The Athletic, he wrote: ‘Ezri Konsa has completed a move to Arsenal from Aston Villa in a deal worth £51million plus £4m in potential add-ons.

‘The England international has signed a four-year contract with the option of a further year, having undergone a medical with the north London club.’

The primary reason Arsenal moved for Konsa relates to ongoing injury concerns regarding William Saliba and Jurrien Timber.

Saliba will miss several months of action while he recovers from a back injury sustained while playing for France at the World Cup.

Timber continues to nurse an ongoing groin problem and won’t be available for selection at the start of the season.

Konsa’s versatility – being able to play at centre-back and right-back – will ensure Arteta isn’t caught short in any position while others are on the treatment table.

Ornstein subsequently revealed Konsa is in line to make his Arsenal debut in their second league match of the season on Monday, August 31. Coincidentally, it’s against Villa.

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Arteta shuts down Lewis-Skelly, Zubimendi transfer talk

Arteta has also publicly spoken about the potential exits of Myles Lewis-Skelly and Martin Zubimendi, both of which have hit the headlines as a result of Guimaraes joining.

Both are central midfielders, though with Guimaraes likely to partner Declan Rice when all are fit and available for selection, neither of Zubimendi or Lewis-Skelly would feature in the biggest games from the off.

Nevertheless, Arsenal are now a team with genuine hopes of winning quintuples each year, and excellent strength in depth is a must. As such, Arteta has insisted neither player will leave.

On Lewis-Skelly, when asked if the academy graduate will stay at Arsenal beyond the summer window, Arteta replied: “100 percent.”

On Zubimendi who’s been linked with Real Madrid after they missed out on Rodri, Arteta spoke of the Spaniard’s huge importance to his side, stating: “Zubi without a doubt was one of the best players for Arsenal last season.

“Without him we would never get into the position that we got in the last few weeks and he deserves massive credit. He deserves some credit from all of us, all the coaches, myself and especially his team-mates.

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“We know that without him we would never reach the level and the way that we competed throughout 10 months. At the end, yeah, he didn’t play that much. He still played some important minutes but he didn’t play that much.

“But no one can neglect the importance of what we did and how important he is for us. So that’s something that’s important to comment because a lot of people end with the taste, ‘No, but this player played in the Champions League final’.

“This guy did it for 10 months. Otherwise we weren’t here and we wouldn’t be playing in those finals. I think he deserves a lot of credit for that.”