Arsenal are one of two clubs in the mix for Gabriel Magalhaes after others fell away and the defender must now decide at the start of the week if he will join Arsenal or Napoli.
Arsenal have had a bid of €30m accepted by Lille for Gabriel Magalhaes according to Le10Sport in France meaning that the 22-year-old will need to decide if he wants to play in England or Italy.
Arsenal had reportedly offered €22m previously for the player but have now put in a bid which the French side are happy to accept.
The report in Le10Sport says that the player will have to decide at the beginning of the week but, while this transfer does look to be picking up pace, Lille’s president said Gabriel would pick his new club ‘this week’ at the end of July which obviously didn’t happen.
Gabriel was been left out of Lille’s squad for their friendly on 8 August and the club handed his number 4 shirt to an 18-year-old.
It was reported at the start of the month that the left-footed central defender had chosen Arsenal over Manchester United, who were one of the clubs in the running but who now seem to be out of the picture.
Speaking at the weekend to Sky Sports News, Lille president Gerard Lopez gave an update on the future of 22-year-old centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes.
Lopez confirmed that the player asked to leave this summer, the Ligue 1 side set their demands and a number of clubs met them, namely, Arsenal and Napoli. At this point, it’s up to the player to make his decision, which he’ll reportedly do in the coming days.
“He is one of the players that we allowed to exit the club this summer,” Lopez said. “He asked for it and wants to try something else.
Arsenal are closing in on the signing of Gabriel Magalhaes
They have agreed a deal with the player and this comes as a blow to Napoli who believed they were in pole to sign him
— Link Up Arsenal (@LinkUpArsenal) August 16, 2020
Gabriel Magalhaes Arsenal shirt number: What could it be if he does sign?
“We clearly told him what our expectations were, we spoke to a number of clubs, our expectations were met by a number of clubs and we have given him the time to decide.
“It is going to be entirely his decision. We tend to try and steer our players in certain directions, but at the end of the day, it’s the player’s decision.
“I know he is going to make a decision early next week…we have clearly decided to close the door to further clubs at this stage and let him choose.”
Gabriel Magalhaes signed a contract extension with Lille in February that tied him to the club until 2023.