Nicklas Bendtner is set for a fresh start away from Arsenal as the Denmark striker closes in on a £9m move to Sporting Lisbon.

The Arsenal manager, Arsène Wenger, last week revealed the 23-year-old had been given permission to miss the friendly against Cologne and training camp in Germany "to sort out his future".

Bendtner, pushed further down the pecking order following the arrival of the Ivory Coast forward Gervinho, was photographed in Portugal and is expected to push through the formalities of his move over the weekend.

Two other Arsenal players who look set to miss the Emirates Cup – which will see Thierry Henry return to the club with New York Red Bulls – are the captain, Cesc Fábregas, and Theo Walcott.

Fábregas, who remains the subject of a £30m transfer bid by Barcelona, has not featured at all during pre-season, training with the youth squad this week as he works on a hamstring injury, which, officially at least, has been the reason for his extended absence.

Walcott, meanwhile, was sent home early from Germany because of a niggling ankle complaint, with the results of scans expected to reveal whether or not the England forward will be in contention for the start of the new domestic season in a fortnight.