Arsenal has been dealt a transfer blow in their bid to land Real Madrid’s Achraf Hakimi following news that he is close to agreeing on a deal with Inter Milan.
The full-back has been on loan at Borussia Dortmund for the last two seasons and his fine form for the Germans has attracted the attention of several top European sides, including Arsenal (The Metro).
Borussia Dortmund was also looking to tie him down to a new loan deal. However, the defender is set to return to Madrid at the end of this season and he will now look to continue his career at Inter.
This report is coming from respected Sky Italia journalist, Gianluca Di Marzio, who reported about the move in two separate Tweets.
In the first tweet, he said: “#Hakimi – @Inter, the operation is closing! Club details agreement, final title for approximately 40 million @SkySport#calciomercato”
In a second tweet, he said: “#Hakimi – @Inter : 5 year contract at around 5 million per season (including bonuses). Negotiation started in secret in March, today the bureaucratic machine to define clauses and details started @SkySport #calciomercato”
Hakimi would have been a great buy for Arsenal, however, it does seem that Mikel Arteta had accepted that was going to miss out on the signing as he has handed a four-year deal to Cedric Soares.
Again, there is no way we’re looking at another defender this window.