Arsenal are set to complete a deal to sign Gabriel Magalhaes from Lille after winning the race for his services.
The defender has been at the centre of a transfer battle between Arsenal and Napoli as both teams look to bolster their central defensive options before the summer window closes at the beginning of October.
Last week it was widely reported that the Gunners had agreed a deal worth £22m with Lille to sign Gabriel, but were facing competition from the Serie A side.
While Manchester United and Everton were also attributed with an interest in the 22-year-old but he has appeared to have chosen the Gunners.
But according to Brazilian outlet UOL, Magalhaes was not prepared to wait for Napoli to conclude the sale of Kalidou Koulibaly.
The report claims the Italian side wanted to sell Koulibaly before securing the services of the youngster.
However, the report indicates that Magalhaes did not want to wait around for Napoli in case Koulibaly's exit failed to materialise.
As a result, the player instead decided to sign for Arsenal and secure his future in the Premier League.
Lille's president Gerard Lopez confirmed last weekend that several clubs had met their asking price for the Brazilian.
"He [Gabriel] is one of the players that we allowed to exit the club this summer, he asked for it and wants to try something else," he told Sky Sports.
"We clearly told him what our expectations were, we spoke to a number of clubs, our expectations were met by a number of clubs and we have given him the time to decide.
"It is going to be entirely his decision. We tend to try and steer our players in certain directions, but at the end of the day it's the player's decision. I know he is going to make a decision early next week."
While speaking to talkSPORT on Thursday, Lopez gave another update on the deal.
"That choice, I don't think I'm giving up too much if I say, it's going to be made today or tomorrow," he said.
"I couldn't tell you at this stage what it is. We've given him some recommendations but we don't like to talk in public because we don't want people to feel bad.
"We've told him where we think he could and should go but at the end of the day he and his environment make their choice and we support that."
