Arsenal complete £27million signing of Leandro Trossard from Brighton

Arsenal have completed the signing of Leandro Trossard from Brighton in a deal that would ultimately be valued at £27million.

Mikel Arteta has been keen to bolster his attacking options as the Gunners have been seeking a first Premier League title since 2004, and Belgium international Trossard, 28, fits into the picture.

Brighton will receive a guaranteed amount of around £20m, with the remaining £7m made up of achievable incentives – and the Gunners have handed Trossard the No 19 shirt previously worn by Nicolas Pepe.

Arsenal have completed the £27million signing of Brighton forward Leandro Trossard

Trossard’s arrival will boost Mikel Arteta’s attacking options ahead of the title fight

The forward will wear the No. 19 shirt previously worn by Gunners outcast Nicolas Pepe

Trossard could be in the Arsenal squad to face Manchester United in a crucial clash at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday. The club announced they had submitted all the required paperwork to the Premier League.

After the signing was confirmed, Arsenal boss Arteta said: “It’s a good job by everyone at the club to finalize the signing of Leandro.

“He is a versatile player with high technical ability, intelligence and a lot of experience in the Premier League and internationally.

“Leandro joins our squad as we head into the second half of the season and we are all looking forward to working with him. We welcome Leandro and his family to Arsenal Football Club.”

The Gunners’ sporting director Edu added: “We are delighted to have completed the signing of Leandro Trossard. We have a clear plan and strategy for our direction and it was a great team effort to bring Leandro to the club.

Arteta and Edu both expressed their delight at completing the signing of the 28-year-old forward

“Leandro is a player who will offer us a high level of quality in the future. I know Mikel and our coaches are looking forward to working with him. Welcome Leandro!’

sports mail understands Trossard can expect to double his current salary at Emirates Stadium to around £90,000 a week.

He takes over the No 19 shirt from Gunners outcast Pepe, who has struggled since moving from Lille to the Emirates for £72million in 2019 and is currently on loan at Nice.

Pepe is still signed as an Arsenal player but the loss of his shirt number suggests Arteta sees no future for the winger at the club.

Arsenal were looking to sign Ukraine winger Mykhailo Mudryk this month but were stared at by London rivals Chelsea, who initially paid Shakhtar Donetsk £62m with a possible £26m in surcharges.

The Gunners, who enjoy a five-point lead over Manchester City at the top of the Premier League with a game in hand, moved quickly to identify other targets including Trossard.

Chelsea announced the signing of Mykhailo Mudryk from Shakhtar Donetsk last Sunday

The Gunners moved quickly to identify other targets after missing the Ukraine star

Trossard in action for Brighton on New Year’s Eve against his new club Arsenal

The Belgian has been training alone at Brighton amid an ongoing standoff with manager Roberto De Zerbi.

His contract at the Amex Stadium was due to expire in the summer, although Brighton retained the option to extend it for a further 12 months.

But he was dropped from the squad that beat Liverpool 3-0 last Saturday and continued to be banned from the first-team this week.

Trossard, who also drew attention from Tottenham, made it clear he wanted to leave the south coast club and has now gotten his wish.

However, it remains to be seen how Trossard will end up in what is likely – at least from the start – a peripheral role under Arteta, whose starting XI is largely fixed.

But his Premier League experience will give Arsenal’s title-winning hopes a big boost as he won’t need time to adjust to a new division.

Trossard had been dropped from the Brighton first-team squad following a row with De Zerbi

De Zerbi and Trossard have been at odds since the Italian coach took over

The Belgium striker has made it clear he wants to move to new pastures from Brighton this January

His versatility is a big draw for Arteta, with Trossard able to play both on the flank and as a No10.

Trossard featured in all three of Belgium’s games at the World Cup and was called up by Roberto Martinez in the crucial final group game against Croatia, ahead of Eden Hazard.

Sportsmail revealed the standoff between Trossard and De Zerbi.

The manager said last week: “The last training session before the game in Middlesbrough (last Saturday) when he understood he wasn’t playing he left the session without saying anything to me. And it’s not good.

“The Monday after that I spoke to him and explained to him this attitude, this behavior that I don’t like. He knows very well that if he wants to play with me at Brighton he has to work hard, he has to run, he has to be on the right path because we are not a big team like Real Madrid or Barcelona, ​​we are Brighton and we need players who work like the others who stay in Brighton.

Trossard in action for Belgium against Croatia in the group stage of the World Cup

“I don’t know what the problem is. I want to be clear, I’m open for him to step back and listen to him, but he has to understand me, I just want players who work hard and play 100 percent for the team.

The episode then took an unexpected turn when Trossard’s representative issued a statement saying the forward wanted to leave and that de Zerbi gave his client the cold shoulder after an incident at the training ground involving another player.

Agent Comhair Josy said: “Before Leandro went to Qatar, Brighton intended to (re)sign Leandro.

“It didn’t come to that because the parties didn’t come to an agreement. Leandro has also indicated that he is ready for his next move.

“After the World Cup, there was an argument between Leandro and another player in training over a small matter. Since then, the trainer hasn’t spoken to Leandro, which of course doesn’t help the atmosphere or the performance.

The Belgian has scored 25 goals in 121 appearances for Brighton after signing from Gent in 2019

‘Leandro still had a spot against Southampton and Arsenal but he was a benched player against Everton. He was also not taken into account in the five substitutions that took place at the time, and without any justification.

“In the run-up to the FA Cup match against Middlesbrough, Leandro had already indicated twice that he had problems with his calf.

“That was the reason why he stopped training. Incidentally, this was done in consultation with the medical staff.

“Leandro had to learn from the fitness trainer that he had to train separately. Last Monday the coach indicated that he didn’t want to see him anymore, a coach who hasn’t communicated directly with his player for four weeks is really incomprehensible.

“It is also the coach who has pointed out on several occasions that a transfer is the most convenient solution.

“Therefore it is important that Brighton cooperate and act benevolently on a potential transfer, which is mutually beneficial.”