Arsenal are reportedly closing in on a deal to sign centre-back Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa.
The Athletic’s David Ornstein reported that Arsenal are close to finalising the transfer for the England international following discussions at boardroom level between the two clubs.
Konsa, 28, is the Premier League champions’ top defensive target, with his flexibility in being able to operate at right-back as well as at the heart of the defence offering significant appeal.
Mikel Arteta’s men have also been linked with a move for Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarrell Quansah, another who can play both positions.
However, with Leverkusen having seemingly made it clear Quansah is not for sale, the Gunners will now look to tie up a move for Konsa and make him their fifth signing of the summer.
Konsa has two years left on his contract with Villa, for whom he has made 286 appearances for the club since joining from Brentford in 2019.
A crucial figure for Villa in their rise under Unai Emery, Konsa featured in 48 games last season, which ended with a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League and glory in the Europa League courtesy of a 3-0 win over Freiburg in the final.
Konsa started all but one of England’s games at the 2026 World Cup as they finished third, their best performance at the tournament since their victory in 1966. He scored the second goal in England’s 6-4 win over France in the third-place play-off.
Arsenal fill last major need
Having made a significant addition to the midfield by prising Bruno Guimaraes from Newcastle United and earlier brought in a new left-winger in the form of Christos Tzolis, a signing at the back stood as the last major issue for Arsenal to address in the transfer market.
Konsa’s seemingly imminent arrival checks that box, with his signing coming at a time when both centre-back William Saliba and right-back Jurrien Timber are out through injury.
While Guimaraes had a quiet game in the Community Shield win over Manchester City, Tzolis’ instrumental performance raised hopes the former Norwich City forward can succeed in his second spell in the Premier League after a prolific stint with Club Brugge.
Arsenal could still look to add further to their ranks up front, though it appears unlikely that reported interest in Vinicius Junior, Julian Alvarez and Bradley Barcola will result in any of those stars making the move to Emirates Stadium.
But with Konsa providing crucial strength in depth at the back, a team that had little difficulty slicing open Enzo Maresca’s City looks in excellent shape to defend their title.
Villa’s transitional window continues
Coming off the high of their first major trophy since the 1996 League Cup and preparing for another Champions League campaign, Villa would have entered the summer hoping to build towards further successes.
But the financial regulations within Villa must operate have made that a difficult task, and instead they are set to see at least one more of Emery’s key players leave.
Villa have already lost England forward Morgan Rogers to Chelsea, albeit for a record fee for a British player of £117million, before Manchester United paid the release clause of £35m for star midfielder Youri Tielemans. Left-back Lucas Digne also departed to return to Paris Saint-Germain.
Now Konsa is set to follow them out of the exit door and striker Ollie Watkins could join him. Villa have reportedly rejected a bid from Al Hilal for a player who has scored 108 goals for the club, but Watkins is thought to be keen to make the move to Saudi Arabia.
Villa have made some astute signings, bringing in World Cup star Johan Manzambi after the attacking midfielder impressed for Switzerland, while replacing Tielemans by acquiring Joao Gomes from Wolves.
Zion Suzuki looks set to be their new goalkeeper as Emi Martinez angles for a move elsewhere, and Matteo Ruggeri arrived from Atletico Madrid to fill the left-back void. On the right side of defence, Aaron Wan-Bissaka is poised to come in from West Ham and provide competition.
But the signing of Alejandro Garnacho on loan from Chelsea represented more of a gamble and, with Konsa and potentially Watkins set to leave, there will be more gaps in Emery’s squad to fill.
The plus side for Villa is that they have one of the best managers in the Premier League to guide them through this transition, but Emery undoubtedly faces a difficult challenge to have this revamped squad competing on four fronts in 2026-27.
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