Chelsea closing in on £18million Arsenal superstar as Batshuayi prepares to leave London – reports

Chelsea are all set to conclude the signing of Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud for a reported £18million fee and the deal will go through as soon as Arsenal acquire Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang from Borussia Dortmund for a club record £60m.

According to a report from Sky Sports, the Gabon international was spotted at Dortmund airport on Tuesday afternoon arrived at the Luton Airport at 2 pm on Tuesday afternoon and is already at Arsenal’s London Colney training ground to finalise the legal formalities with the Gunners.

A club record £60m fee has been finalised between the clubs and as all this is set to be done, Sky Sports understands that Dortmund will only sanction the sale if a potential replacement is acquired.

It’s a complete merry-go-round this, between Arsenal, Chelsea and Borussia Dortmund. The arrival of Aubameyang will see Olivier Giroud falling further down the pecking order at Arsenal and with the FIFA World Cup just six months away, this would be the last thing for the Frenchman to bear.

Meanwhile, as things stand for Chelsea, striker Michy Batshuayi is expected to leave the club on loan. However, Chelsea will only follow this deal if another centre-forward is acquired.

According to the aforementioned source, the likes of Olivier Giroud, Michy Batshuayi and Anthony Modeste are thought to be the reported targets and Batshuayi, amongst those, is expected to be a firm arrival. And to fill the void left by the Belgian at Stamford Bridge, Arsenal striker Olivier Giroud has been identified as a potential target.

Bundesliga transfer window closes at 5 pm on Wednesday, hence it is all clear that everything will be finalised by tomorrow afternoon.

So as things are right now, Chelsea are closing in to sign Olivier Giroud for £18million (Telegraph) and this will pave the way for Michy Batshuayi to go on loan to Borussia Dortmund for the rest of the season.