Ezri Konsa is expected to undergo a medical at Arsenal on Wednesday after the Gunners agreed a deal worth around £50 million plus add-ons for the England international.
Konsa, who grew up supporting Tottenham, pushed for the move following an extended break after the World Cup.
Potential debut at Villa Park
Premier League champions Arsenal are not expected to beat Thursday's 12pm registration deadline for Konsa to feature in their opener against Coventry City on Friday, and his fitness still requires work after Unai Emery gave him four full weeks of rest alongside Ollie Watkins and Emi Martinez.
This means there is a firm chance that Konsa, if all formalities go to plan, could make his Arsenal debut at Villa Park — the ground he has called home for the past seven seasons — on August 31.
Arteta's top defensive target
Mikel Arteta has been set on signing the 28-year-old, who was his top defensive target and had a new lucrative contract on the table at Aston Villa, despite interest in other centre-backs including Jarell Quansah, Cristian Romero and free agent John Stones.
Konsa can also operate as a right-back and is seen as a plug-and-play signing, similar to the £75m arrival Bruno Guimaraes, that bolsters Arsenal's depth in the absence of William Saliba, who is out with a long-term back problem.
Negotiations and deal details
Arsenal initially made a £30m approach for Konsa earlier this summer, which was immediately dismissed, before returning last week and communicating their desire to reach £40m. Villa held firm on their £60m asking price until Konsa, who had two years left on his existing deal, made it clear he was determined to pursue the opportunity and return to London, where he previously played for Brentford and Charlton Athletic.
He is on course to become Arsenal's fifth summer acquisition after Piero Hincapie (his loan from Bayer Leverkusen became permanent), Illan Meslier, Christos Tzolis and Guimaraes, taking their spending to around £194.5m.
Homegrown status and squad impact
Konsa is set for a substantial pay rise and will become the latest high-profile Villa sale after Youri Tielemans (Manchester United), Morgan Rogers (Chelsea) and Lucas Digne (PSG), while Watkins and Martinez also face uncertain futures at the club. Watkins is wanted by Al-Hilal, who have had three approaches rebuffed to date.
Another factor in Arsenal's decision to sign Konsa is that he is a homegrown player. Having eight homegrown players registered will enable them to officially name a 25-man Premier League squad. Winger Gabriel Martinelli currently classifies as homegrown but he could yet depart before the deadline. If the Gunners were only able to list seven senior homegrown players, they would only be able to register a 24-man squad.
