Arsenal: Emiliano Martinez set for Aston Villa medical after £20m fee agreed
Argentine is on the verge of signing a four-year deal with Villa
Emiliano Martinez will undergo a medical at Aston Villa in the next 24 hours after the club agreed a £20m deal with Arsenal for the goalkeeper.
The Independent understands Martinez has travelled to Birmingham, with the 28-year-old set to sign a four-year contract.
Negotiations over the goalkeeper’s future have dragged on for almost a month now, with Villa having a £15m bid rejected by Arsenal last week after provisionally agreeing personal terms with the Argentine’s representatives.
Arsenal’s head coach Mikel Arteta made several attempts to persuade Martinez to stay, however, he never offered the keeper any assurances of being the club’s No 1.
The lack of clarity caused Martinez to reject a significantly improved contract offer from Arsenal, leaving the club with little choice but to accept his desire to leave and use the fee to fund further incomings.
Martinez was left out of Arsenal’s squad for their 3-0 victory against Fulham on the opening day of the Premier League season.
"We have a special situation," Arteta told BT Sport. "Obviously the transfer market is open and we know all the rumours, so we made the decision to start Bernd [Leno] today."
Meanwhile, Villa are still hoping to sign a winger, with Werder Bremen’s Milot Rashica of interest.