Arsenal secure verbal agreement with Brazilian teenage sensation
It is being reported in the British press that Arsenal has reached a verbal agreement with teenage Brazilian forward, Gabriel Martinelli.
The Daily Mail, citing sources in Brazil, are claiming that we have seen off as many as 25 clubs to secure the youngsters signature.
The 17-year-old currently plays for fourth division side Ituano in the Brazilian State Championship where he has knocked in 10 goals in 31 games.
Martinelli spent four years with Brazilian giants Corinthians and even though he has had to drop down divisions to get games he has clearly impressed when you consider that, in addition to us, clubs like Man Utd and Barcelona have also reportedly shown interest in him.
In fact, United even gave the lad a trial before deciding not to pursue him any further.
A fee in the region of £5 Million has been mentioned and the deal will become official next month once the teenager receives an Italian passport, thus bypassing any work permit issues.
This is very good news for us, this kid appears to be something special and the fact that we have beaten some of the biggest clubs in the world, including Premier League rivals, to his signature shows that we can still attract some of the most talented prospects in the game.