Arsenal Transfer News: Gunners Set to Sign Borussia Dortmund Starlet

Nineteen-year-old Borussia Dortmund attacking midfielder Thomas Eisfeld has flown to London and is in advanced negotiations with Arsenal, who are preparing a £400,000 compensatory bid to prise him away from the defending Bundesliga champions, Goal.com is reporting.

German news service Ruhr Nachrichten is also announcing that the move is almost complete.

While Eisfeld doesn't carry the name recognition or star power of teammate and compatriot Mario Goetze—also heavily linked with a move to Arsenal this season—he is highly rated, scoring six goals in 12 matches for the Dortmund U-19 team this season.

Eisfeld's Wikipedia page already lists him as an Arsenal player, and the move is apparently all but sealed, pending a medical examination. The young German should be able to integrate London Colney, Arsenal's training center, in the coming days.

Since he is out of contract at the end of the current season, and has his path to the Dortmund first team blocked by attacking midfielders Goetze, Moritz Leitner, Leonardo Bittencourt and Mustafa Amini, a fresh start makes sense for Eisfeld's future development.

In all likelihood, Eisfeld will begin his Arsenal career with the reserve team, whereupon manager Arsene Wenger can monitor his development before deciding whether to sign him to a long-term deal. Eisfeld does have a history of knee problems, including an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear in 2009, but his current form provides sufficient evidence that he has made a full recovery from that setback.

Aside from the Thierry Henry short-term loan deal, this marks the first transfer activity by Wenger in the January window.