Arsene Wenger has confirmed the signing of Gabriel Paulista from Villarreal should be completed tomorrow.
The manager spoke to BT Sport after today’s 3-2 win over Brighton and was asked if reports that the deal was close were accurate.
“Yes, they are accurate,” he said. “It is very, very close. It should be done tomorrow.
“He is 24 years old, good size, good pace, he is a good defender. He’s only played one year in Europe, so maybe there are some things to work on, but the potential is there.”
The main issue now is the work permit, but the Frenchman seemed confident, saying, “We will be all right on that front.”
fucking get in!
Not possible that this signing is happening:
1. Not being done on the last day of the transfer window
2. Not a 5 foot 6 inch number 10
3. No crazy work permit issue meaning we sign him then can’t play him
4. Exactly what we need, looks a great signing
5. We are playing full price not peanuts
But seriously, fantastic news!!
maybe no.3 might just happen
Wenger’s little grin in the interview says not.
Also, he doesn’t have a genetically malformed spine.
6. Has a fully functional back
Compared to dejan lovren or luke shaw we are paying peanuts.
Yes, and for a better player.
@ 5 . fee is undisclosed, but I strongly doubt we paid the full 20 mill release clause, Wenger did some bargain magic with the Campbell loan I’m sure.
Brilliant! Hope there will be no problems regarding the work permit
Hopefully he settles in quickly. Good signing.
The divil 😉
knows well what hes at 😉
what a man, Arsene!
Where has he played for Villareal this season does anyone know? Left or right of central defence?
Central defence. This left right crap is bollocks. Shitty excuse for when theybolay crap, ohhh he played left sided cb when he usually plays right?.
Do you ever hear anyone saying ohhhh Ramsey played shit cos he played left side of central midfield instead of right?
It does make a difference.
Why do Per and Kos play the same side each time, why not swap for a change? Why did Tony Adams play the same side all the time, Sol Campbell etc etc?
I’m not sure Tony Adams did play the same side with Campbell as he did with Keown to be honest, I thought he played on the right with Campbell and left with Keown, I could be wrong. But obviously when a partnership is formed, and given that organisation is key to the position swapping sides just breeds confusion. And of course which foot either player prefers to play with.
ever played there? got anything to base your opinion on? If not……..
Both.
he is comfortable in both sides in central defence unlike Per, and he can play LB and RB if needed. he has couple appearances for villareal as a LB .
And for what i read he is two footed like cazorla he can play with booth feet same and his natural foot is right.
awesome!
and he’s pretty good at magic tricks too……. can’t wait to see him in red and white!
But does he save bunny rabbits?
Only highlight vid I watched he was at LB against Real Madrid. Reminded me of Gibbs in his size and pace and style. He definitely has good athleticism, and he’s clearly versatile.
Apparently he can play at both full backs as well. Seems like a solid, versatile player. Get in!
Yep, he can play all four positions at the back, but he’s primarily been used in the middle. We’ve got a winner with this kid – he not only gives us a third first-choice option at CB, he’s also back-up for the fullbacks. Great job by Wenger.
The main issue now is the work permit, but the Frenchman seemed confident, saying, “We will be all right on that front.”
Explanation – Brown envelope has been passed to the Home Office executive.
I heard we just sent a stern photo of Steve Bould.
Work PERMIT for Paulista or a work OUT with THAT man!
Usually works wonders 😉
A stern photo of Bould and £1.
Carrot & stick!
We’re not Chelsea you know…
Welcome Kosc 2.0!
Pretty easy to be an Arsenal fan at the moment
Can I just say you do a great job Arseblog (y) I read this blog every morning like a daily newspaper!
Keep up the great work!
So do I 🙂 I find a bit of Arseblog on the loo sets myself up for the day quite nicely
I honestly can’t start work until I have it read.
you mean you only check ONCE a day?
Don’t forget the news section!
so do I, and I’ve been trying to find out that article where Grimaldi claims the problem of using data and statistics in scouting to comment this, but well, since you started so it goes here, there was this really interesting case of an interview where I was once rejected despite my best efforts and 4 months later when I again chanced on that job interview, by mentioning stories from this blog, the same one about Grimaldi and his complaining about the stats, I finally got that job, that too on the day we thrashed city 2-0, i.e just a… Read more »
What are you on about???
He got a job by reading Arseblog.
I like the ruthless approach in this transfer. No lengthy fee negotiations, no cover ups, no waiting along for summer, no procrastinating whatsoever.
Completely agree! Shame the fans still felt the need to complain when Bielik had been signed early on but nothing’s perfect ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Well… That went very well.
This is all way too smooth and slick for an Arsenal deal… I feel… uncomfortable.
good news.. summer transfer conclude in the winter.
All these Arsenal fans coming out in support of Wenger when the club are doing well. What about when we do bad!!! You stick with him through the good times and bad. He has transformed our club into a superpower. In Arsene we trust.
I’ve noticed that the haters have been conspicuously silent the last couple of weeks. Long may that last.
I mentioned that a few days back, and some tosser said I was crashing the comment thread (intruding)….. Thanks Arsene for shutting them up, no wind in their sails, ahhhh, ha!
get a grip fella. he changed the tactics to what we’ve been screaming for for years and it worked! shock horror
when we all wanted to push for title this year we’re nowhere near it
Okay, one of them’s not silent, then.
Spoke too soon… shame..
Some stones are best left unturned.
Is it just me or is it all the more sweeter on the back of the reports that united started sniffing around also?
Just thinking ahead to the summer, there are now no absolute glaring holes to fill! Wenger can just focus on cherry picking to add icing to the squad. Amazing times.
Mmm Schneiderlin icing…
I don’t think Schneiderlin could get in the team right now.
Not only are there no glaring holes, but provided this deal doesn’t fall through and the new guy doesn’t turn out all Squillaci, this is the first time in ages (ever?) when you could conceivably (in some parallel universe where nobody gets injured) fill two starting XIs with players of proven quality, with nobody out of position. Without even starting Flamini!
ozil giroud sanchez
coquelin ramsey cazorla
monreal kos mert debuchy
ospina
ox welbeck theo
arteta rosicky wilshere
gibbs paulista chambers bellerin
szczesny
Wouldn’t say no to a bit of Schneiderlin, mind…
haha
I’ll only believe it if you tell me Wenger did THAT smile.
very good signing this, he,s an upgrade on mertesacker with his pace.
I don’t think he’s supposed to be an upgrade on Mertesacker. He’s obviously an alternative to Koscielny and his knackered achilles tendons.
That would make no sense, surely he can replace either. Or do we have to have one slow defender?
Depends how the partnership works. One big one, one speedy one is a good combination. And Paulista plays LB, so is more naturally on Kos’s side.
Chambers is Merts understudy
Yep, he typically plays the Kos role for Villareal with a less mobile partner being the Per.
He plays all over the place though. Bit of a Mr. Fixit type, he can slot in just about anywhere and give a decent account of himself.
Honestly, I have never seen this guy play.
I can’t wait to be impressed!
🙂
He’s decent and very very very quick!
I believe you, despite your shifty ‘honestly!’.
Another good news day? WTF
I’m not kidding,but the advertisement that I’m getting just below the article reads in hindi “Get a passport within 10 days”. What kind of sorcery is this?
Scroll up and down very quickly on the picture. Extremely disorienting.
Hmmm … what’s that yellow crap all over his head?
It’s not much help given we won’t be able to get a work permit.
Oh yeah good point, why didn’t the club think off that….
I’ve only seen a 3 minute YouTube compilation of paulista but that is enough to make me an authority on him, so I can say 100% he’s one of the top 3 cb’s in the world. Great signing!!
* Top 3 CB’s at the Arsenal
Welcome! But wait a minute; Arsene Wenger is preparing a team that will be very attractive to top coaches when he calls time on his career here. Reminds me of Bayern and Guardiola. Compare that to the aging contraption Sir Alex left behind.
You will remain ever dear in my heart Arsene Wenger…Long may you live to watch this team rule England and Europe…thanks.
Let’s be honest what Ferguson left at United was a disgrace and completely selfish. For the last couple of years as manager he didn’t pay any attention to the long term and was only interested in the immediate short term that he was going to be there.
It would be very Arsenal to sign a stop gap defender who can’t play for a couple of years pending a permit. I have absolutely everything crossed that my fears are unfounded and that Gabriel features in the next round of the cup, but until then I am more than a little anxious. Tell us everything’s gonna be ok Blogs !
Fingers crossed for the work permit
Not sure how we have got around that issue but hope we have
Come on Arse one more signing
One more
Arsene’s waited quite some time to assemble the type of squad we have. He’s a different type of buyer with his new pocketbook.
Fantastic signing… Paulista!!!
Any international friendlies in the pipeline for Brasil? A call up would sort the permit problem straight away.
The work permit rules change in the summer but as this has already been agreed it is not unreasonable for them to give this guy a work permit now given that he fulfils the new criteria. It will already have been approved… done deal.
Well, if nothing else, today confirmed that we need him sooner than later for these cup games.
I still think he could of bought two better signings than the ones he has lets hope they worth it
I don’t see anything surprising about this signing. We have needed a centreback since last summer. We do not need a DM currently. Wenger does not leave anything last minute unless there is competition for price on the player in which case it pays to be prudent and time the signing right. often it is to enable other clubs to commit first (on other targets) and get them out of the way. This player will first and foremost be alternate (Not cover) to Koscielny who is playing through Tendinitis. As such the mobility he brings and aggression is important to… Read more »
Just what we need, a versatile defender with good movement on or without the ball.Great buy
Lads, don’t panic about the work permit stuff. Remember, Anderson (Yeah, the guy who was apparently better than Fabregas, good one United) got into the country on the exceptional talent ruling. If he can do it, we can do it with anybody! COYG, another glorious weekend. I could get used to this.