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Arsenal poised to land experienced defender as first summer signing

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Arsenal are wasting no time on the transfer market this summer as they look to rejuvenate the squad after another disappointing campaign, which has seen the Gunners fail to qualify for the Champions League for the second season in a row.

The club look to be prioritising defensive additions in the coming months, with Per Mertesacker retiring and Laurent Koscielny facing a six-month spell on the sidelines through injury, with it reported that the first signing is poised to be completed.

Gianluca Di Marzio state that Arsenal are closing in on the services of Borussia Dortmund defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos, with head of recruitment Sven Mislintat again being a driving force behind the deal.

Mislintat played a key-role during the January acquisitions of Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, players he worked with closely at Dortmund, and Sokratis is stated to be his next target in the market.

29-year-old Sokratis is out of contract with the Bundesliga side next summer and Arsenal are looking to use that to their advantage, as they look to sign the Greece international for around the £17m mark.

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