Fulham are now in talks with Arsenal over a move for Cedric Soares, having held positive discussions with the player himself.

Sky Sports’ Dharmesh Sheth reports that Fulham are now in direct talks with Arsenal over Cedric Soares, with negotiations with the player’s representatives believed to have gone well.

This is a significant step for a potential deal, as Cedric’s personal terms had been holding up the transfer so far.

The Athletic recently reported that Fulham were in talks over a possible deal for Cedric, either on loan or on a permanent deal.

But Cedric’s salary was reported to be the main point of contention, and Fulham hadn’t agreed on his wages at that stage.

Simon Collings of the Evening Standard also confirmed that Fulham had firmed up their interest over a January transfer, with Cedric open to a reunion with Marco Silva – his former boss at Sporting CP.

Fulham have already maxed out their quota of Premier League loanees, so they’d need to either offload a current loanee or include an obligation to buy in order to secure a loan for Cedric.

Cedric has 18 months left on his Arsenal deal, earning £65,000-a-week, and he’s a long-term target for Fulham.

There were some reports earlier in the window that Fulham were starting to look at alternative targets, with their move for Cedric stalling over personal terms. But it now looks to be back on.

The 31-year-old has been absent from Mikel Arteta’s matchday squads for the last three fixtures, though this appears to be related to a minor injury.