William Saliba's transfer to Arsenal "is on track", according to Saint-Etienne Supervisory Board president Bernard Caïazzo.
football.london revealed on Thursday night that the north London outfit have reached an agreement with the Ligue 1 outfit for the signing of the highly-rated central defender.
The fee is £27m and the 18-year-old still has to undergo a medical before the deal is complete and made official.
Assuming all goes to plan, Saliba will become the Gunners' second signing of the summer transfer window following Brazilian wonderkid Gabriel Martinelli's arrival from Ituano earlier in the month.
Although, Arsenal fans must wait a year to see Saliba in action.
As per previous reports, Saliba won't be playing for the Gunners next season as instead he will be heading back to the Ligue 1 outfit for the 2019/2020 campaign in order to continue his development.
With that said, fans can still track his progress thanks to BT Sport showing coverage from the top flight of French football for another season.
Amid links to north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur, the Saint-Etienne chief has provided an update which will put smiles on the faces of plenty Arsenal supporters.
"Everything is on track with Arsenal," Bernard Caïazzo confirmed on Friday afternoon. "William will do the season with us."
Furthermore, Le Progres claim Saliba could officially be announced as an Arsenal player as early as next week.
This is when Saint-Etienne return from the United States after competing in the EA Ligue 1 games.
Once Saliba is done, the Gunners are expected to press ahead with other transfer plans ahead of the window closing in just under three weeks.
Among those linked with a move to the Emirates Stadium includes Real Madrid's Dani Ceballos, Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Celtic left-back Kieran Tierney.
