SPANISH defender Pablo Mari flew to London on Friday for a medical with Arsenal, according to reports.
A tweet appeared to show Mari in conversation with Arsenal technical director Edu at Galeao Airport in Rio de Janeiro.
And according to ESPN, the Flamengo centre-back, 26, is thought to be on the verge of completing a transfer to the Emirates.
The Gunners are in need of another centre-back with Calum Chambers ruled out for the season and Shkodran Mustafi continuing to struggle.
And it appears Mikel Arteta is ready to move for a familiar face.
Mari spent three years on the books with Manchester City between 2016 and 2019 while Arteta was Pep Guardiola’s assistant.
The defender did spend all three seasons out on loan – at Girona, NAC Breda and Deportivo La Coruna – and did not make a first-team appearance for City before joining Flamengo last summer.
But he has made an instant impact in Brazil, winning the Brasilian Serie A and the Copa Libertadores by the end of 2019.
Mari then featured for Flamengo at the Club World Cup and played the full 120 minutes as the South American champions were edged out 1-0 by Liverpool in the final.
David Luiz has established himself as Arteta’s first-choice centre-back since the new manager came in – in part due to injuries elsewhere.
Sokratis, meanwhile, missed the draws with Sheffield United and Chelsea due to illness.
Rob Holding has returned to action after missing almost two months due to a knee problem.
But the extra reinforcements at the back will no doubt be welcome news for Arsenal fans, who have seen their side concede 34 goals in 24 Premier League matches this season.
Arteta hinted that Arsenal may be going after more than just a defender in this January transfer window.
Speaking ahead of Arsenal’s trip to Bournemouth in the FA Cup on Monday, Arteta said: “We’ve been looking at different positions.
“Since I joined we lost Calum and we had other circumstances and injuries in those positions so it’s true at the back we are short.
“But other positions as well depending what happens in the market that we might need to assess. At the moment I am 50-50.”
