Fabrizio Romano reports that Nottingham Forest are now closing in on a deal for Matt Turner, with a verbal agreement in place and personal terms already agreed.
The two clubs are now just finalising the details of the deal, after which it will be finalised.
The Daily Mail report that Forest are close to a £7m move for Turner, a deal which is expected to help fund the Gunners’ move for Brentford’s David Raya.
That fee would represent a small profit on the £5.3m Turner signing that Arsenal finalised just last summer.
Arsenal also potentially owed the New England Revolution another £2.4m in bonuses for Turner, but it’s fair to assume he didn’t hit any of his bonus targets after seven appearances and no trophies.
David Ornstein wrote recently that Raya’s potential arrival from Brentford may depend on Turner leaving, as he confirmed that Forest are in talks to sign the goalkeeper.
Raya is expected to be a much more expensive addition, at over £20m, so Arsenal need the boost from Turner’s sale to get it over the line.
But it may yet turn out to be worth it, with Raya and Aaron Ramsdale giving Arsenal one of the strongest pairs of goalkeeping options in the Premier League.
29-year-old Turner made seven appearances for Arsenal last season, five in the Europa League and two in the FA Cup, with Karl Hein playing in the League Cup.
But the Gunners now intend for Raya to compete with Ramsdale for a starting spot instead. The Spaniard made 39 appearances for Brentford last season, keeping 12 clean sheets.
If Turner completes his move imminently, he could find himself in goal for the game against Arsenal on their opening day of the Premier League campaign.
