Arsenal confident of signing defender Stephan Lichtsteiner on free transfer

Arsenal confident of signing defender Stephan Lichtsteiner on free transfer

Arsenal are confident they will sign Switzerland defender Stephan Lichtsteiner on a free transfer, reports say.

Lichtsteiner, who has been at Juventus since 2011, looks set to become Unai Emery's first signing as Arsenal boss since he replaced Arsene Wenger.

Emery is fully aware that defensive reinforcements are needed this summer after Arsenal finished outside the top four for the second year in a row.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos, the Borussia Dortmund star, has emerged as Arsenal's top centre-half target but the club also intend to sign a right-back.

According to The Guardian, talks are underway to bring Lichtsteiner to Emirates on a free when his contract at Juventus expires.

The 34-year-old, who has won seven Serie A titles, is expected to captain Switzerland at this summer's World Cup in Russia.

Arsenal confident of signing defender Stephan Lichtsteiner on free transfer

He was strongly linked with a move to Borussia Dortmund earlier in the year after confirming he would leave Juventus at the end of the 2017-18 season.

But Arsenal now lead the race to sign him and are said to be confident of reaching an agreement.

Speaking to Mediaset earlier in the month, Lichtsteiner said: 'I'm playing in one of the biggest clubs in Europe and there's always competition for places.

'But my future is going to be away from Turin. At the end of the season I'm leaving. I'll play abroad next year but I've not signed anything yet.'

The attacking full-back played 38 games for Juve this season and featured in the Champions League fixtures against Tottenham and Real Madrid.

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