According to reports from Spain, Gabriel Paulista will shortly join Arsenal from Villarreal for a fee believed to be in the region of £15 million.

After Mathieu Debuchy returned to action against Galatasaray last month, very few expected that Arsene Wenger would sign a defender, but the Frenchman picked up a shoulder injury recently prompting his manager to look for new defenders.

Arsenal are known to be tracking the Brazilian for some time now and even the defender himself has claimed that playing in Premier League is his dream. It looks like the defender’s dream has come true as Jose Ramon de la Morena of Cadena Ser announced that Gabriel Paulista will sign for the Gunners shortly after Krystian Bielik transfer is made official.

Arsene Wenger has admitted that his side is into the transfer market for defensive reinforcements and he now seems to have found the answer in Gabriel Paulista to solve the defensive crisis. He is also touted to emulate the successes of Laurent Koscielny.

However, it is uncertain that the 24-year-old would get work permit to start games for the Emirates Stadium club since he does not have an international cap. Arsenal have been successful in getting work permits for Ryo Miyaichi and the likes given their age, but he is a little too old to convince the Football Association that he is an emerging talent.