Arsenal are reportedly close to wrapping up the signature of goalkeeper Bernd Leno from Bayer Leverkusen this summer.
The Germany international has been associated with the Gunners since the close of the 2017/18 season and the club appear close to sealing his signature after he was left out of his country’s 23-man squad for the World Cup.
According to reports in German newspaper Bild, the north London giants have already a £22million with Bayer Leverkusen for Leno, who could replace Petr Cech between the sticks next term and an announcement of the deal is imminent.
Obviously, the goalkeeping position was a concern during the previous campaign with Cech prone to making key mistakes which cost the club valuable points on the road.
David Ospina, in turn, has been credible with his performances in the Cup and European competitions but he has also had concerns when intercepting crosses from the wider positions.
As things stand, Sky Sports has not revealed the potential package for Leno’s transfer but it is known that he has a £22m release clause written into his current contract.
Leno has not been in the best of form over the past two years where he has been prone to making a couple of notable mistakes but Sven Mislintat nevertheless appears to have earmarked him as the prime goalkeeping target.
The German is swift with his feet and capable of playing the passing game which has been associated with the Gunners but he has had the odd struggle when being subjected to long-range shots.
Arsenal have already sealed the signing of Stephan Lichtsteiner from Juventus on a free and Leno would potentially be regarded as the club’s third recruit considering an informal agreement has already been reached to sign Sokratis Papastathopoulos from Borussia Dortmund.
