Arsenal plan Leandro Trossard medical after agreeing fee with Brighton
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Arsenal have agreed an initial £21million deal with Brighton that could rise to £27m in add-ons for Belgium international forward Leandro Trossard. The two Premier League clubs have worked closely together to thrash out a deal on Thursday after the Gunners decided to move for the 28-year-old attacker, who was offered to the club via his representatives earlier this week.
Express Sport understands plans are now taking shape for a medical ahead of a potentially frantic rush to register Trossard before the 12pm Premier League deadline on Friday lunchtime.
Should Arsenal officials get the paperwork over the line, Trossard could potentially make his debut for the Gunners on Sunday when Manchester United visit the Emirates Stadium in an unmissable title clash.
Sources have played down the chances of Trossard being involved, however, although his selection is not currently being ruled out and there is every chance he could feature should Arsenal beat the clock.
Trossard trained with his Brighton team-mates this afternoon after being reintegrated to the squad by no-nonsense head coach Roberto De Zerbi before both clubs eventually shook hands on a transfer agreement – meaning a medical is unlikely to begin immediately.
The situation has been described to Express Sport as fluid, however, meaning the first part of a medical could indeed begin tonight in London.
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The former Genk frontman will sign a four-and-a-half-year contract that will keep him in north London until the summer of 2027. It will also contain the option for an additional 12 months that can be triggered by the club.
Arsenal have decided to act quickly after their top January transfer target Mykhaylo Mudryk ended up signing for Chelsea in a blockbuster £88m deal.
The Gunners were adamant the Ukrainian international winger was heading for north London after an agreement was reached on personal terms.
But Shakhtar Donetsk dug their heels into the ground and eventually got the monstrous fee they desired from big-spending Chelsea.
Arsenal did make initial enquiries to sign Moussa Diaby from Bayer Leverkusen but the answer was that the Frenchman was not for sale mid-season unless a big-money offer was presented.
Leverkusen were looking for close to the £88m tabled by Chelsea for Mudryk in order to release Diaby from his current deal in the Bundesliga.
That’s when Arsenal decided to strike and Trossard has been actively seeking the chance to pursue a new challenge after returning from the World Cup unhappy.
Talks over a new contract with Brighton have struggled to bear fruit and the player’s agent Josy Comhair pleaded with the Seagulls to let their client move on last Friday in a strongly-worded statement.
Trossard’s relationship with Brighton boss De Zerbi reached boiling point two weeks ago when he allegedly left a training session without saying anything.
Comhair has since stated on behalf of Trossard that the Belgian had a calf issue that he has since recovered from.
Still, De Zerbi opted to leave his attacker out of the Brighton squad that beat Liverpool 3-0 last weekend in the Premier League at the Amex Stadium.
At that point, his future was in serious doubt despite Brighton rebuffing offers from an unnamed foreign club and Tottenham (£12m) for his services.
Now Trossard will get the chance to bolster Arsenal’s Premier League title challenge as he looks to make an immediate contribution in north London providing there are no late hitches.
Personal terms are already agreed between the league leaders and their potential new attacking acquisition.
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