Arsenal are edging closer to signing Ben White from Brighton

Arsenal are said to be positive that they will have a new center-back in Ben White, with them and Brighton close to agreeing on a deal assumed to be in the range of £50m.

Gunners can breathe a sigh of relief that something is finally happening at the club. According to recent transfer reports, Arsenal are in talks to sign Ben White from Brighton – and talks are believed to have gone extremely well.

The renowned transfer specialist, Fabrizio Romano, says the Gunners have already agreed to personal terms with Ben White. The clubs are working towards finalizing the fee for the central defender.

He tweeted:

"Arsenal are confident to sign Ben White from Brighton in the next few days, as reported by @David_Ornstein. Work in progress on final fee, personal terms already agreed. #AFC Anderlecht midfielder Lokonga has been approached by Atalanta – he only wants Arsenal as priority."

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The 24-year-old central defender played for Leeds United in the 2019/20 season. He played a pivotal role in the Elland Road outfit’s promotion to the English top-flight after 16 years of absence.

Marcelo Bielsa wanted to sign White on a permanent transfer consequently, but Brighton demanded an enormous sum for their defender. The right-footed CB continued with Seagulls for the 2020/21 campaign where they finished 16th in the English Premier League.

The Englishman accounted for 1.58 tackles per 90 for the Seagulls along with 1.94 blocks and 1.27 interceptions per game. His stats are higher than that of the defenders over at the Emirates.

Arsenal’s prominent central defender, Rob Holding accounts for 1.37 tackles, 1.90 blocks and 0.81 interceptions per 90 minutes. Ben White can also offer his passing capabilities and help the team build from the back. He had an 83.2% pass completion rate at Brighton and Hove Albion.

The Gunners had a poor outing last season. They even found themselves in the bottom five in December. However, a few positive results helped them to better their position on the points table.

A lack of prolificness in front of goal together with a porous defense affected their hopes of securing a European spot. The club’s management is under severe stress to sign quality players after the ESL fiasco and must better their last runout.

The lack of European competition and poor finances will affect Arsenal’s capability to sign players from other clubs. Therefore clubs like Brighton will charge them way above the transfer valuation of the best players.

The North London side is said to be tracking a number of targets and have already been rumored to have had bids rejected for some priority targets they are looking to sign this summer.