Arsenal verbally agree club-record £56.5m sale

James Benge of CBS Sports reported on Tuesday that Al Hilal and Arsenal were closing in on an agreement for the transfer of Gabriel Martinelli, with the fee expected to be around €58m (£49.7m) guaranteed, with €8m (£6.9m) in further bonuses.

The total package of £56.5m would represent a club-record sale for Arsenal, but Benge added that it’s all subject to the player’s final approval.

Sami Mokbel then confirmed for the BBC that Arsenal are closing in on a minimum £50m deal to sell Martinelli, with talks advanced and a conclusion imminent ahead of the winger making a formal decision.

Tom Canton reports for Football.London that a sell-on clause in the deal is one of many aspects of the deal being finalised in the last 24 hours, with Benge also previously reporting that the Gunners were looking to include such a clause in the deal.

Fabrizio Romano writes this morning that the player’s agent is in direct contact with Al Hilal to seal an agreement on personal terms.

Romano confirms that a package worth over €65m has been verbally agreed between the two clubs, so it’s all up to the player now.

Martinelli has been a key player for Arsenal over the last seven years, making 278 appearances and scoring 62 goals from his spot on the left wing.

The 25-year-old has won the Premier League, the FA Cup, and the Community Shield, and he extended his contract on a couple of occasions amid intense interest from elsewhere.

But the last couple of weeks have made it clear Mikel Arteta no longer intends to give the winger significant minutes, leaving him out of the matchday squads against Manchester City and Coventry City. It seems he’s now on the verge of a move to the Saudi Pro League.