Arsenal are closing in on a deal to sign Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa, the Athletic reports.
The Premier League champions have been searching for defensive reinforcement with both William Saliba and Jurrien Timber currently sidelined through injury.
Konsa, 28, has been high on Arsenal’s summer target list, prized in particular for his ability to cover both centre-back and right-back.
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Talks with Villa are now advancing after dialogue at ownership level helped close the gap between the two clubs’ valuations of the England international.
Konsa returned to Villa for pre-season training on Monday, having been given extended time off following the World Cup. It’s understood Arsenal have also held an interest in Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarell Quansah as they weigh up their defensive options this summer.
With two years left on the five-year deal he signed in September 2023, Konsa was a key part of England’s run to the World Cup semi-finals, starting every match until being introduced as a 72nd-minute substitute in the defeat to Argentina.
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He typically played centrally but also covered at right-back for both club and country, including during Quansah’s two-match suspension at Villa.
A mainstay of Unai Emery’s side, Konsa made 48 appearances in all competitions last season as Villa won the Europa League and finished fourth in the Premier League, and started all but one Champions League fixture the year before as Villa reached the quarter-finals.
He has made 286 appearances for the club since joining from Brentford in 2019.
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