Douglas Luiz has asked Aston Villa to sell him to Arsenal - journalist

By Shamanth Jayaram

Douglas Luiz has just asked Aston Villa to sell him to Arsenal ahead of the end of the transfer window tonight, claims Sport Italia journalist Rudy Galetti.

The Gunners are desperate for a new midfielder following injuries to Mohamed Elneny, Thomas Partey and Oleksandr Zinchenko. They want a new man in the middle of their park, and it looks like Luiz is their primary target on transfer deadline day.

• David Ornstein has just given Arsenal fans a brand new Douglas Luiz update

Douglas Luiz has asked Aston Villa to sell him to Arsenal

Luiz was at the Emirates last night as Aston Villa suffered a 2-1 defeat to the Gunners. The Brazilian even managed to score – straight from a corner, just seconds after coming on.

That probably caught Mikel Arteta’s eye, and the Gunners have reportedly made their move.

Sky Sports reported just a few hours ago that Arsenal have tabled a £20 million bid to sign Luiz, who has entered the final year of his contract. The report claims that Villa aren’t prepared to let him leave today, but the Brazilian wants to go.

Galetti revealed on Twitter this afternoon that Luiz has asked Aston Villa to ‘facilitate’ the agreement with Arsenal. The journalist further reveals that personal terms have already been agreed between the player and the Gunners.

He tweeted: “Douglas Luiz is pushing for the transfer to Arsenal. He has asked to Aston Villa to facilitate the agreement with #AFC. It will be a race against the deadline, but the will is to close the deal on time.”

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Arsenal have left it really late in the window to complete what appears to be their final deal of the summer.

With Elneny and Partey both set for a spell on the sidelines due to their respective injuries, the Gunners really need to bring in a new midfielder, and Luiz, branded as an ‘unbelievable’ player, would be a great addition.

The Brazilian knows the Premier League really well, is excellent on the ball, and as he showed last night, he can score goals too. He would be a fine signing for the Gunners, but Villa won’t make it easy this late in the window.

This will definitely go down to the wire, but with the player reportedly keen on the move as well, a deal could well go through.