Arsenal ‘on verge of signing Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa with transfer close for England World Cup star’

ARSENAL are reportedly closing in on Ezri Konsa as cover for the crocked William Saliba. The north Londoners had a £30million move for Aston Villa centre-back rejected earlier in the window. Arsenal are closing in on the services of Aston Villa ace Ezri Konsa Credit: GETTY The Gunners had a £30million bid for the 28-year-old rejected by Villa earlier this window Credit: GETTY Villa knocked back the bid as they wanted £60m for the England international, who was one of their star performers last season. But an agreement between the two clubs, according to The Athletic, could soon be reached. Sign up for the Arsenal newsletter Thank you! Dream Team is back, free, and there’s £100,000 up for grabs! They claim the Premier League champions are working on finalising a deal for the defender after successfully lowering Villa’s asking price. The fee could be close to the £40m SunSport understands the Arsenal brass value Konsa at. Mikel Arteta‘s pursuit of a new centre-back is the direct result of a lengthy stint on the sidelines for star defender Saliba. The Frenchman is set for a prolonged period out due to the niggling back injury he was dealing with in the final months of last season. The injury came to a head in France‘s World Cup semi-final defeat to Spain. After going down in the 29th minute of his country’s 2-0 defeat to La Roja, Saliba is reported to have said: “My back is gone, my back is gone.” Most read in Sport SUN VEGAS WELCOME OFFER: GET UP TO £100 BONUS Arteta gave a grim update on the 25-year-old after Arsenal’s pre-season defeat to Borussia Dortmund earlier this month. He said: “I cannot tell you how much. William Saliba is in rest mode at the moment for two weeks. “He had to do almost nothing, an aggravated injury, so it’s going to take some time to heal. We know that.” The Spaniard then admitted he’s in the market for a new defender, saying: “We conceded some poor goals today in the way we competed, especially. “But that’s a very collective responsibility. So we need to improve with the players that we have. Arsenal won’t be able to call on the services of William Saliba for an extended period of time Credit: GETTY The centre-back’s niggling back injury came to ahead in France’s World Cup semi-final defeat to Spain Credit: GETTY “And we want to improve, for sure, we want that.” On adding more reinforcements to his title-winning side, he said: “Well, that’s what we’re trying to do. “It has to be the right player in the market to make us much better. “We are very much looking forward to that. Arsenal kick off their defence of the Premier League on Friday night, welcoming Coventry City to the Emirates. Comment now