According to an update from Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal will soon officially announce the signing of teenage winger Marquinhos.
The Gunners will pay 2.9 million pounds for the teenager who is set to sign a deal until 2027 at the Emirates.
Marquinhos had a 45 million pounds release clause in his current contract, but that has now been declared illegal in Brazil under what is known as the Pelé clause, which forbids clubs from typing players to long-term professional deals when they are still underage.
With the teenager refusing to sign a new contract, they faced losing him for nothing and were happy to accept the offer from the Gunners because at least they generated some value for him.
He is likely to be sent out on loan next season in order to gain some first-team experience, with La Liga one possibility that is under consideration.
His arrival is likely to be the first in what may become a busy summer in the Emirates.
Marquinhos, who was born in April 2003 in Sao Paolo, only made his professional debut for Sao Paolo last year, and he has represented Brazil at both Under-16 and Under-17 levels.
Arsenal have been strongly linked with a move to sign Gabriel Jesus from Manchester City in recent days, with the Brazilian’s future at The Etihad seemingly in doubt following the Citizens’ move to land Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund. This transfer was confirmed last week.
The 25-year-old Brazil international has scored eight goals and made eight assists in 27 league games for Pep Guardiola’s men this term.
Meanwhile, the Gunners are currently preparing for their final Premier League game of the season at home to Everton on Sunday afternoon.
When Marquinhos signed his first professional deal in 2019, he agreed a five-year deal with Sao Paulo.
That length of the contract is allowed by the Brazilian Football Confederation, but FIFA do not recognise first professional contracts longer than three years.
So, according to FIFA, Marquinhos is out of contract this summer, and Sao Paulo have been unable to convince him to extend.
As a result, according to his local federation, the young winger is technically under contract, but that contract wouldn’t hold up if put to FIFA. The simplest solution for Sao Paulo is to sell cheap.
Arsenal could have attempted to sign Marquinhos for free in the summer, but it might have ended up getting messy, and the chance to bring the player without a fee would likely have attracted attention from others.
Instead, the Gunners have opted for a minimal fee to get the signing done and build a relationship with Sao Paulo, who will be grateful to get anything at all.
