ARSENAL are on the verge of sealing the £50m transfer of Brighton's Ben White, SunSport can exclusively reveal.
And the Belgian is said to have already chosen to wear the number 48 shirt with the Gunners next season.
Meanwhile Arsenal are looking to bolster their attacking options with a move for Tammy Abraham of Chelsea.
And defender William Saliba has completed another loan move to France, this time joining Marseille.
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- Thomas Blow
ARTETA CALLS SCOTLAND TRIP 'PERFECT'
Mikel Arteta has dubbed Arsenal's trip to Scotland 'perfect' – despite his team failing to win either of their pre-season friendlies.
The Gunners suffered a poor 2-1 loss to Hibernian and needed a late equaliser to earn a 2-2 draw with Rangers.
But the manager is remaining positive, telling the club's official website: "I think it [the trip] was perfect, even the weather was something that we didn't expect.
"I think KT's [Tierney] been really helpful with that and I think the way we've been treated by the hotel, the staff, the facilities – I think it was a really positive camp."
- Thomas Blow
ARTETA PRAISES NUNO
Arteta has also praised Nuno Taveres after he scored his first Arsenal goal in today's match against Rangers.
The Gunners boss told the club's official website: "A great debut with his [goal on his] right foot as well!
"He's only been with us a few days but you can already see his qualities, his physicality and then the quality on the ball that he has.
"He's integrating with the lads really well, so it's a good start."
- Thomas Blow
ARTETA REACTION
Mikel Arteta has been speaking about Arsenal's 2-2 draw with Rangers at Ibrox earlier today.
He told the club's official website: "Overall I'm really pleased with the performance.
"I think we dominated the game, we created so many chances – I counted about eight or ten clear chances to score – but this game is decided in both boxes.
"We weren't clinical in the opponent's box and we conceded two goals from two corners, which were the only chances they had apart from the counter-attack from our own corner.
"It's much better from the other day and you tell that physically we were already better in the second game.
"The organisation was better, individually they played better, but I really liked the collective understanding of the game and how we executed a lot of things we've been working on in the training pitch."
- Thomas Blow
NUNO REACTION
Nuno Taveres scored his first goal for the Gunners today as they earned a draw against Scottish champions Rangers at Ibrox.
Speaking to Arsenal's official club website, Taveres said: "It was a good game for me and for us.
"A good test. I think we had a good match and we learned a lot.
"I feel very happy to score my first goal with Arsenal. I'm so excited for this and today I did it.
"It's good to play with the best, like Aubameyang and Laca. They're very good players and to play with them, it's so good.
"I'm so excited to play with fans at the Emirates. I can't wait for this. We will see."
- Thomas Blow
SANDER BERGE LATEST
Arsenal could reportedly cool their interest in Sander Berge as they are unwilling to meet Sheffield United’s £35million asking price.
According to Sheffield United News, no bid has been forthcoming from the Gunners.
The Athletic has reported that Arsenal don’t see £35m as a fair reflection of Berge’s value in the current market.
Also, Edu seems to prioritised moves for Ben White and Albert Lonkonga.
- Thomas Blow
RANGERS MATCH REPORT
Arsenal twice came from behind to earn a draw against Scottish champions Rangers at Ibrox.
New signing Nuno Taveres and sub Eddie Nketiah were on target in front of 2000 fans in Glasgow.
Leon Balogun and sub Cedric Itten scored for the home side in a competitive encounter.
Arsenal’s side had almost £200m-worth of quality in the starting line-up, with £72m Pepe and £45m Thomas Partey joining Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in Arteta’s opening line-up.
Click here to read the match report
- Thomas Blow
MIK WANTS JACK
Arsenal have been linked with a move for Aston Villa captain Jack Grealish – but Manchester City are still leading the race, according to reports.
Pep Guardiola’s champions have long been linked with a £100million move for the England ace.
Man City also want Three Lions captain Harry Kane to move to the Etihad in a £150m deal.
However, The Athletic report Arsenal ‘admire’ Grealish, 25, along with rivals Tottenham.
It’s unlikely either North London club will have the financial clout to sign the attacking midfielder this summer.
On top of that, Grealish is said to be happy at Villa Park and would only consider leaving for Champions League football.
Neither Arsenal nor Spurs are able to offer that in 2021-22.
- Thomas Blow
GREAT TO SEE JIM
Raul Jimenez was named in Wolves’ starting XI for their pre-season clash against Crewe in the striker’s first game following a horror fractured skull eight months ago.
The Mexican forward, 30, required oxygen after losing consciousness following a sickening clash of heads with then-Arsenal star David Luiz in November 2020.
Click here to read more
- Thomas Blow
AU DEAR
Arsenal captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has had a woeful afternoon in front of goal against Rangers, missing three great opportunities.
His poor display has left Arsenal fans fearing for the worst, with the Gunners winless in two games against Scottish opposition.
Goal’s Arsenal correspondent Charles Watts tried to be optimistic about Aubameyang on Twitter, highlighting the fact that he’s finding himself in good positions to score.
But one Gunners fan responded saying Aubameyang has picked up where he left off last season.
The supporter tweeted: “What’s worrying is Auba has picked up where he left off last season. Not scoring a lot.”
Click here to read more
Credit: The Sun
- Thomas Blow
MORE ON SAKA
Arteta has also urged Saka to take his game to the next level after his wonderful efforts for England this summer.
The manager told the club's website: "I spoke to Gareth before the tournament and we all shared the same opinion on B: that this kid is going to push everybody there, just the way he trains, the way he is, the way he competes.
"The maturity that he has shown at his age is pretty special, I have not seen many of those [with it] – and now he is going to have to cope with other things over the next year, it is going to be about expectations.
"Can he do it again? Can he raise his game again, can he improve, can he keep making better decisions, be more consistent, start to win more regularly?
"That is the thing that he needs to do that at this very early stage in his career."
Credit: Getty Images – Getty - Thomas Blow
ARTETA PRAISES SAKA
Manager Mikel Arteta has praised Arsenal star Bukayo Saka after England's shootout defeat to Italy.
The 19-year-old missed a penalty as the Three Lions lost the Euro 2020 final.
Arteta, providing an update on Saka, told the club's official website: "He's fine.
"Obviously he had some tough days after what happened in the final but I think you have to look at the whole picture.
"This kid, at 19 years old, has played almost every game in the Premier League.
"He was our Player of the Season, I think he has earned the respect and admiration of everyone at the football club.
"But not only that, he's gone to an international stage, he started the European competition with an injury and still he has managed to be in the starting XI.
"He reached the final and he couldn't lift that trophy but I think he has a much bigger trophy than that, and that's that now he really knows that in good and bad moments, everybody at the club, every Arsenal fan and every English fan is right behind him.
"He has earned that with his behaviour, his talent and with the way he is. That's going to be there for the rest of his life.
"A trophy is there in the wardrobe and then you have to be the man in the next one.
"But what he has achieved and how he has united people is very powerful and he should be really, really proud of that."
- Thomas Blow
GUNNERS FAIL TO BEAT RANGERS
Arsenal's friendly against Rangers at Ibrox has finished 2-2.
Defender Leon Balogun opened the scoring for the hosts in the 14th minute before Nuno Tavares equalised on debut.
Forward Cedric Itten re-established Rangers' lead in the 75th minute before Eddie Nketiah scored a late goal to spare Arsenal's blushes.
- Thomas Blow
CLOSER LOOK AT WHITE
Arsenal have reportedly agreed a £50million fee with Brighton for centre-back Ben White.
The 23-year-old joined Brighton's academy in 2014, making his professional debut two years later in a League Cup match against Southend.
White spent the 2017-18 campaign on loan at League Two side Newport, immediately becoming an integral player.
He made 42 league appearances that term, picking up Newport's Player of the Year award – despite his lack of experience.
White spent time at Peterborough the following season, playing 15 times in League One, before moving on loan to Leeds for the 2019-20 campaign.
The youngster played every game for the West Yorkshire side as they won the Championship, picking up their Young Player of the Year award.
He was also named in the PFA Team of the Year, persuading parent club Brighton to give him a chance in the Premier League last term.
White went on to make 36 Prem appearances, earning Brighton's Player of the Year award and earning a place in England's Euro 2020 squad.
He looks some player, Arsenal fans.
- Marc Mayo
LOC AND LOAD
Arsenal could be about to beat Juventus to the signing of Manuel Locatelli.
The Italy midfielder is being fought over by the two clubs with Sassuolo wanting around £34million for the transfer.
However, according to TuttoMercato, the Juve offer of a two-year loan followed by an automatic £25m deal does not satisfy Sassuolo.
Arsenal could therefore beat the Old Lady to the punch – although Locatelli is said to favour a switch to Turin.
- Kealan Hughes
NUNO TIME
Nuno Tavares is set to make his first Arsenal appearance after The Gunners announced the team to take on Rangers this afternoon.
Florian Balogun also gets his first start of pre-season, as do Rob Holding, Thomas Partey, Nicolas Pepe and Emil Smith Rowe.
Kieran Tierney and Joe Willock have been named on the bench so could also get their first taste of pre-season action.
- Kealan Hughes
'HE HAS EVERYTHING'
According to The Telegraph, Arsenal are eyeing up a move for Tammy Abraham this summer, and one player who may be very happy about that is Willian.
The Brazilian of course knows Abraham very well from their time together at Chelsea, and the winger certainly rates Abraham highly.
And in a previous interview with the Evening Standard, Willian said of Abraham: "He can become one of the best strikers in the world. He is only 22 and he has everything.
“I’ve played with good players, good strikers like Diego Costa and Fernando Torres. Now Tammy can become one of the best.
“I don’t know if he can be better than them, but I think he can, potentially. He just has to improve every day because in football you need to do that."
- Kealan Hughes
XHAKA UPDATE
Granit Xhaka has reportedly given up his bonuses from the 2020/21 season in order to secure a move from Arsenal to Roma this summer.
Roma boss Jose Mourinho has been keen on bringing in Xhaka since moving to Italy, and the Switzerland captain reportedly agreed to a five-year deal with the Serie A club last month.
And the 28-year-old is apparently so keen on a move to Roma that he will give up his bonuses from last season to help get the deal across the line.
This is according to Football Italia, who say that Xhaka has told his club that he wants to leave.
- Kealan Hughes
'INCREDIBLY VALUABLE'
Arsenal have appointed former Manchester City man Nicolas Jover as their new set-piece coach.
Jover worked with Arteta while at The Citizens together and the Spaniard is delighted to have him aboard.
Mikel Arteta told Arsenal.com: "We had a situation in the summer with Andreas [Georgson], where he had the possibility to leave to his country. He had different reasons to do that and I understood that situation, so we needed to recruit somebody.
"After looking through what the best solution would be, a person that I know was on the market, was available, is someone whose expertise are incredibly useful and valuable for us.
"He’s joining us. His name is Nicolas Jover and I’ve worked with him before at City.”
- Kealan Hughes
WILL HE STAY OR WILL HE GO?
Arsenal are likely to allow Joe Willock to leave on loan this summer, according to Chronicle Live.
And if Willock does leave on loan, he may sign a contract extension with Arsenal first.
Willock is keen on first-team football and Newcastle are probably the most likely to offer him that, but he’s still assessing his options at this stage.
The Gunners are believed to have set a £20million asking price for the midfielder which means a loan may be more realistic.
- Kealan Hughes
PL MOVE ON THE CARDS
Reiss Nelson is attracting attention from several Premier League clubs as he wavers on signing a contract extension with Arsenal, reports CBS Soccer's James Benge.
Crystal Palace, Brighton and Brentford are linked to Nelson, and he is said to be seriously considering their interest.
The winger started against Hibernian on Tuesday but has generally fallen behind Bukayo Saka, Willian and Nicolas Pepe in the pecking order.
Mikel Arteta reportedly wants to protect Nelson’s future value by offering him a contract extension before offering him out on loan.
But if he decides against that, it’s likely a permanent sale will be sanctioned with the player having only one year left on his contract.
- Alex Terrell
BEN WHITE STATS
Here are the Brighton defender's numbers last season in the Premier League.
Will White have what it takes to plug the holes in Mikel Arteta's leaky defence?
- Kealan Hughes
GLIMMER OF HOPE
Arsenal could be in for Martin Odegaard this summer after all, according to the Daily Star.
Real Madrid are looking to sell fringe players in order to boost their transfer budget and Odegaard supposedly falls into that bracket.
Mikel Arteta is a huge admirer of Odegaard and would reportedly jump at the chance to bring him to North London on a permanent basis.
- Kealan Hughes
BIG DEMAND
Arsenal could reportedly cool their interest in Sander Berge as they are unwilling to meet Sheffield United's £35million asking price.
According to Sheffield United News, no bid has been forthcoming from the Gunners.
The Athletic has reported that Arsenal don’t see £35m as a fair reflection of Berge’s value in the current market.
Also, Edu seems to prioritised moves for Ben White and Albert Lonkonga.
- Kealan Hughes
GER-ED UP
Arsenal continue their short pre-season tour of Scotland with a match against Rangers later today.
And Kieran Tierney, who cut short his holiday this week to return to training, could be in line to start.
His inclusion means new signing Nuno Tavares could have to settle for a place on the bench.
Meanwhile, Pablo Mari and Cedric Soares could retain their place in the starting lineup with 19-year-old Omar Rekik replacing fellow youngster Harry Clarke.
Emil Smith Rowe, Nicolas Pepe, Thomas Partey and Alexandre Lacazette could all earn their first start of pre-season.
- Kealan Hughes
HE'S THE MAN
Arsenal have reportedly bid around £38.5m for Sassuolo and Italy star Manuel Locatelli, according to Sportsmediaset.
The bid is thought to satisfy Sassuolo although they are holding out for Juventus to make a move too.
Locatelli is believed to favour a move to Juve but there is a growing belief in the Arsenal camp they could muscle in on the deal.
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