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Arsenal are closing in on the capture of Sokratis Papastathopoulos, according to reports in Germany.

The Borussia Dortmund centre-back is out of contract in 2019 and is believed to be on his way out of the Westfalenstadion at the end of season.

Papastathopoulos has been linked with several clubs across Europe, with Manchester United, Chelsea and Juventus all said to be keen.

But Bild are reporting that Arsenal are in the driving seat for the 29-year-old and that the Emirates is his ’probable’ destination in the summer.

The report claims that Arsenal’s head of recruitment Sven Mislintat is the man pushing for the deal and that he is in ‘close contact’ with the defender’s agent Konstantinos Farras.

Mislintat is looking to bring in three players this summer to improve the spine of the team, with a goalkeeper, centre-back and central midfielder his primary targets.

Any deal for Papastathopoulos, who Mislintat helped bring to Dortmund from Werder Bremen in 2013, will cost around €20m.

(Image: Alexandre Simoes/Borussia Dortmund/Getty Images)

Arsenal, meanwhile have been given a major boost in their pursuit of Max Meyer - with Schalke's sporting director now confirming the midfielder will be leaving this summer.

The German international is one of the players on the Gunners' summer transfer wishlist, with Mislintat a big fan of the 22-year-old.

Meyer, who has flourished since dropping back into a holding role in the Schalke midfield, is out of contract in the summer so available on a free.

The Bundesliga outfit have been offering him big money to extend his stay, but he has rejected all approaches to sign a new deal.

And now sporting director Christian Heidel has confirmed the player will leave the club at the end of the campaign.

He said: "Meyer will definitely leave Schalke this summer. We're dealing with the situation very professionally. It's all been very amicable."

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