Ezri Konsa is on course to make his Arsenal debut against Aston Villa at the end of the month. Standard Sport understands that Konsa has been Arsenal's top defensive target all summer, with manager Mikel Arteta keen to bring in reinforcements amid injuries to William Saliba and Jurrien Timber.
£55m deal confirmed
A deal had looked to be in doubt as the Gunners had no intention of meeting Villa's £60million valuation of the 28-year-old, though following a breakthrough regarding a compromise, a deal worth £55m was announced on Friday. As such, Konsa has become the Premier League champions' fourth signing of the summer transfer window, after Illan Meslier, Christos Tzolis and Bruno Guimaraes.
Registration deadline missed
However, the Gunners have lost the race against the clock to have the England international available for selection against Coventry City. For Konsa to have been eligible to face the Premier League new-boys, he needed to have been registered by Thursday's 12pm BST deadline, because the Gunners kick off the new season on Friday night at the Emirates Stadium.
With the Coventry game coming too soon, the next opportunity to hand the defender a debut will come a day before the transfer window slams shut, ironically at Villa Park, as Arsenal face Unai Emery's side in their first away game of the new season on August 31.
Versatility and fitness
Capable of operating in central defence and at right-back, Konsa's versatility and Premier League experience will appeal to Arteta, in addition to his impressive ground duel success rate. With that said, Konsa will be short of match fitness, having not played a single minute of Villa's summer friendlies and the UEFA Super Cup loss to Paris Saint-Germain. This is because the defender was afforded extra time off after helping England finish third at the World Cup, though he has since resumed training at Bodymoor Heath.
