Arsenal have reportedly agreed a deal worth €2m to sign Icelandic goalkeeper Runar Alex Runarsson from French club Dijon, according to RMC journalist Mohamed Bouhafsi.
The 25-year-old who joined the French side in 2018, has gone to make 36 appearances for them in Ligue 1. He has also consistently featured in the Icelandic National team having made his debut in 2017.
RMC journalist Mohamed Bouhafsi has revealed that the North London club have reached an agreement with Dijon to sign Runarsson, who will sign a five-year deal.
Bouhafsi also claimed that the medical will be done in two stages with the first part taking place at Dijon while the latter part will take place in Paris tomorrow. Here is the tweet:
#Arsenal have struck a €2m deal with Dijon to sign goalkeeper Rúnar Alex #Rúnarsson, who will sign a 5-year contract with the Gunners. Medical will be done in two stages, 1st part begins in Dijon today, then more examinations in Paris.
— Mohamed Bouhafsi (@mohamedbouhafsi) September 17, 2020
Runarsson is set to join the Gunners as a backup for first choice keeper Bernd Leno after the departure of Emiliano Martinez. The Argentine left for Aston Villa in a deal worth £16m and Arsenal have turned their sights to the Dijon keeper.
One of the possible reasons for the club looking at Runarsson is the fact that goalkeeping coach Inaki Cana has already worked with him during his time at Danish club FC Nordsjælland.
So, Cana will have an in-depth knowledge on his abilities. The other options for the Gunners to replace Martinez were Matt Macey and Dejan Iliev.
These two players are not as experienced as Runarsson which is another factor that plays into his favor. Having spent time in Denmark and France, Runarsson has significant experience when compared to the young duo.
Arsenal will be happy that they managed to get a backup keeper for a small fee keeping a large portion of the Martinez transfer fee intact for other possible moves. Runarsson will become the number two keeper at the Emirates but should get decent game-time this season owing to the schedule.
After a comfortable 3-0 win against Fulham, the Gunners will take on West Ham United next and Mikel Arteta will want to keep the club’s winning streak going. The Spanish boss will also keep an eye on the transfer market with Thomas Partey and Aouar heavily linked with a move.
