Report: Real Betis lead race to sign Arsenal’s Sokratis

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Real Betis are now leading the race to sign Sokratis Papastathopoulos with the Arsenal defender set to make a decision on his future shortly, according to a report from Tuttomercatoweb.

Sokratis looks destined to leave the Emirates. He is yet to make an appearance for Mikel Arteta’s side so far this season.

He seems to have been linked with a host of clubs across Europe since the window opened. But perhaps there is now a good chance that he will end up heading to Spain.

According to Italian outlet Tuttomercatoweb, Genoa’s hopes of signing the centre-back have been dealt a blow. It is claimed that Real Betis are now in pole position to sign him.

It is certainly good news for Arsenal that Sokratis is attracting so much interest. According to Spotrac, he earns £92,000-a-week.

So it would hand a big boost to Arteta’s January plans if they could move him on this month.

Arsenal have the depth to cope with the £17.7 million man’s departure (fee reported by the Guardian).

Pablo Mari and Gabriel Magalhaes are threatening to become really smart signings for the Gunners. And Arteta has a number of other options also available to him if required.

So freeing up almost £100,000-a-week on the wage bill could make a major difference for Arsenal. And it appears that it may be Real Betis who hand the Gunners that boost.