Arsenal are closing in on a deal to sign Aston Villa defender Ezri Konsa.
The Premier League champions are in the market for defensive reinforcement with both William Saliba and Jurrien Timber currently sidelined with injuries.
England international Konsa, 28, holds particular appeal given his ability to cover at both centre-back and right-back and has been high on Arsenal’s target list all summer.
Work is now advancing with Villa to finalise the move after dialogue at ownership level to reduce the valuation gap for the defender.
Konsa returned to Villa for pre-season on Monday after being given extended time off following the World Cup.
The Athletic reported on Friday Arsenal also held an interest in Bayer Leverkusen defender Jarell Quansah as they consider their options at the back this summer.
Konsa has two years remaining on his Villa contract, having signed a five-year deal in September 2023.
Konsa won the Europa League with Villa last season. (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)
The defender was an important member of England’s squad which reached the World Cup semi-finals this summer. He started every match until the 2-1 defeat to Argentina in the last-four stage, when he appeared as a 72nd-minute substitute.
He was typically deployed in the centre of defence, but also provided right-back cover following Quansah’s two-match suspension, a position he has also covered for Villa.
Konsa has been a mainstay in Unai Emery’s Villa squad in recent years which has consistently competed at the top end of the Premier League and in Europe.
He made 48 appearances in all competitions last season as Villa won the Europa League and finished fourth in the Premier League.
In the 2024-25 campaign, Konsa started all but one of Villa’s Champions League fixtures as they reached the quarter-finals, where they were beaten by eventual winners Paris Saint-Germain.
Konsa has made 286 appearances for the club since joining from Brentford in 2019.
Arsenal’s title ambitions are clear
Analysis by Arsenal correspondent Art de Roche
Arsenal’s summer-long interest in Konsa after Saliba’s back injury was a sign of Mikel Arteta’s desire to be well stacked with quality options across the pitch throughout the course of the 2026-27 season.
The Arsenal manager could have used Cristhian Mosquera and Ben White as covering centre-backs in Saliba’s absence, but Timber not yet returning from his groin injury may have made the backline a more pressing issue.
Speaking ahead of their Community Shield win over Manchester City, Arteta said: “We want to improve and evolve the squad. In order to do that we have detected some areas that can be strengthened and that is what we are trying to do.”
Reports of Arsenal’s interest in Konsa were met with debate as to whether a 28-year-old centre-back would be necessary at a relatively high price point when they had shown interest in other defensive profiles at the start of the window.
To push forward with Konsa, however, may give an indication of how seriously Arteta is taking Arsenal’s title defence. Rather than looking at a younger profile, he is going after yet another experienced Premier League player who should have few issues plugging into his system.
During the World Cup, Dean Smith, who bought Konsa for Brentford and Aston Villa, told BBC 5Live that his biggest strengths are that “he’s really calm on the ball and his one-v-one defending is outstanding”.
Even with the upsides of the potential signing, Konsa’s game-time when Saliba returns will be interesting to watch. Saliba will no doubt be eased back into action, but when he is in the flow, what happens to Konsa?
Konsa can play at right-back too, which will be seen as a major benefit, but he is also accustomed to playing 80-90 per cent of Aston Villa’s minutes in a season. A chance to be part of Arsenal’s hunt for trophies may soften any qualms about game-time later in the season, however.
Where does this leave Villa after recent sales?
Analysis by Aston Villa correspondent Jacob Tanswell
Konsa leaving Villa would be the latest exit in a summer of upheaval at the club.
Manager Unai Emery has taken the club to another level since taking over four years ago, but has done so mainly with a core group of players.
The spine of last season’s team has been slowly dismantled this summer, with Morgan Rogers, Youri Tielemans, Lucas Digne leaving and the future of goalkeeper Emi Martinez uncertain.
Furthermore, there has been interest from Saudi Arabia in forward Ollie Watkins.
Should Konsa also leave, it will be a very new-look Villa who kick off the new Premier League season this weekend.