Arsenal only paid £5m for Gabriel Magalhaes this summer, according to a report, with the rest due over the next three years of his deal.

The Guardian’s Nick Ames reports that Arsenal signed Gabriel Magalhaes for an initial payment of £5m. The Gunners agreed a deal for around £25m in total, but only a relatively small percentage of the payment was upfront.

Presumably, that means Arsenal will pay around £6-7m a year for the next three summers.

This structure was obviously important for Arsenal in the current financial situation, with less money to spend in the first place. It was also crucial for their planned pursuit of Thomas Partey later in the summer.

As we know, Atletico Madrid were refusing to negotiate with Arsenal for Partey. They insisted the Gunners could either activate the midfielder’s release clause or walk away from the deal. That meant €50m in one immediate payment.

If the club also had to pay £25m in one go for Gabriel, I’d be willing to bet they wouldn’t be able to sign both players this summer. But with the structure of the Gabriel deal, they had the funds (with a little help) to bring in Partey as well.

It’s a good thing they landed Gabriel too, as he’s already performed well enough to win a Player of the Month award at Arsenal. At 22 years old, he could definitely be around for the long term, to more than justify those annual payments.