Arsenal’s chances of signing in-demand fullback, Emerson might have gone completely bust as latest reports claim that Barcelona and Real Betis have agreed to sign the 20-year-old on joint transfer from Atletico Mineiro.
The agreement will see Emerson make his way over to Betis after finishing his international duties for Brazil in the 2019 South American U20 Championship while Barcelona pays a part of his transfer fees and reserve themselves the right to sign him in the future. The Blaugrana will share player rights with Betis as well.
This comes as a massive blow to the Gunners who have been dealt with a flee on injuries in their defence. First-choice right-back, Hector Bellerin had to be carried off the field in the 2-0 win over Chelsea and has been ruled out for the remainder of the season.
Both Sokratis Papastathopoulas and Laurent Koscielny looked to have picked up serious injuries in the 1-3 FA Cup loss to Manchester United on Friday evening with the latter being sent to the hospital.
Unai Emery does have Stephan Lichtsteiner and Carl Jenkinson to fill up Bellerin’s spot at right-back but the duo is also in the final six months of their contract. Arsenal were never in the driving seat to sign Emerson anytime soon due to the lack of funds provided to Emery.
However, losing out on a top prospect is another headache that the Spanish manager will have to deal with as the race for the top-four spots stiffen in the second half of the 2018/19 campaign.
See Also: Koscielny And Sokratis Add To Arsenal’s Injury Woes
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