Arsenal trying to secure £25m deal to sign Douglas Luiz

Arsenal are trying to secure a last gasp move to sign Douglas Luiz and are prepared to pay up to £25m for the Aston Villa midfielder, according to reports.

Mikel Arteta admitted after Arsenal’s 2-1 win over Aston Villa on Wednesday night that the club need to bring in another midfielder before the transfer window closes at 11pm tonight.

Thomas Partey is already on the sidelines with a thigh injury and Mohamed Elneny is facing several weeks out with a knee problem. To make matters worse, Martin Odegaard also limped off last night with a knock.

Therefore, Arsenal desperately need to sign a central midfielder today and widespread reports claim the North Londoners are making a move to try and land Luiz from Villa.

The Athletic says Arsenal are ready to make an offer for the 24-year-old and although Villa are reluctant to let him leave, Luiz is keen on securing a move to the Emirates Stadium before tonight’s deadline.

Fabrizio Romano claims that Arsenal are in talks with agents trying to get a deal agreed while The Sun journalist Jack Rosser says the Gunners are prepared to pay £25m for the South American star.

Cash-in

The Brazilian international has less than a year left on his contract at Villa Park and is showing no sign he’ll pen an extension, so Villa may be forced to cash-in rather than risk losing him for nothing.

Luiz has made over 100 appearances for the Villans since joining the club from Manchester City in 2019 but has lost his first team place this season. The midfielder has started just one of Villa’s five league games so far, with summer signing Boubacar Kamara preferred by Steven Gerrard in the middle of the park.

It would make sense for Villa to sell as they would received £25m for a player who’s not in the starting eleven and is likely to walk away for nothing next summer, so it would be smart business to cash-in.

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Arsenal saw first hand what Luiz is capable of as he came off the bench to score directly from a corner to make it 1-1 before Gabriel Martinelli secured a 2-1 win for the Gunners at the Emirates last night.