Arsenal close to agreement with for 21-year-old defender

Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera is closing in on a move to the Premier League, with personal terms already agreed with Arsenal. The Gunners are keen to sign the 21-year-old as depth in defence, providing cover for Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba.

Mosquera has been in the spotlight for some time, and came close to a move to Atletico Madrid last summer. Meanwhile AC Milan, Juventus and Bayern Munich have all looked into moves for him over the past year. However it appears Arsenal are in pole position to secure his signature.

A starting defender for Valencia, Mosquera has a release clause somewhere in the region of €80-100m, but with just a year left on his contract, Los Che are stuck between a rock and a hard place. They had been due to negotiate an extension with Mosquera, but after a delay in the contract offer, and significant interest, Mosquera has decided he will not sign a new deal with the club. Hence Valencia will try to cash in on Mosquera this summer, in a bid to avoid losing Mosquera for free.

Mosquera, having agreed terms with Arsenal, has made it clear he wants to play for them, and has turned down a contract offer from Valencia in recent days, as per Matteo Moretto. He is awaiting an agreement between the Gunners and Valencia, and The Athletic report that it is close, with potential developments this week.

Valencia had initially been demanding around €25-30m earlier in the summer, but appear to have dropped their asking price to €20-25m. Arsenal’s original bid was around €12m for Mosquera, but it seems likely to be closer to €20m. With more than two seasons experience starting in La Liga, it will likely still look like a bargain price for the Spain under-21 international.