Arsenal Reportedly Close in on £16M Sokratis Papastathopoulos Transfer

Arsenal are reportedly closing in on the signing of Borussia Dortmund centre-back Sokratis Papastathopoulos.

According to Jack Pitt-Brooke of The Independent, the Gunners are keen to reshape their entire defence this summer following the arrival of new manager Unai Emery, and recruitment chief Sven Mislintat has highlighted Sokratis as an option.

"Mislintat knows 29-year-old Sokratis well from his own time at Dortmund and now Arsenal are in advanced negotiations to bring him to the Emirates," the report noted. "Arsenal initially offered roughly £13 million, but they are expected to meet Dortmund’s asking price of £16 million to complete the deal this week."

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It's noted in the piece that Sokratis only has a year to run on his contract at the Westfalenstadion, which is why he would be available for a knockdown amount.

During his time in Germany, the defender has cemented his status as a key man for Dortmund and become the leader at the base of the team following the departures of players such as Mats Hummels and Neven Subotic.

It appears as though the Greece international may also be on the brink of a new challenge, though, and Chris Wheatley of Goal believes he would be a smart addition for the Gunners:

Not only would Sokratis represent a bargain acquisition, he would also bring steel to an Arsenal defence that has become increasingly brittle down the years.

The Dortmund man is an aggressive defender, who relishes aerial battles and flings himself into tackles with force. The physicality he plays with would make him an ideal fit for the Premier League, and Sokratis has also shown he's tactically adaptable down the years, playing in both a back four and a three-man defence.

Still, there are some issues that have been present in his game in the Bundesliga, namely his concentration can wander and his decision-making can be a little rash. Journalist Stefan Bienkowski has doubts about whether he would be a good acquisition:

Arsenal would benefit from new faces in defence, though, as the team has lacked cohesion in this area for a while.

Laurent Koscielny remains the Gunners' best defender but is injury prone, while Skhodran Mustafi endured a testing second season at the club. Miguel Delaney of The Independent believes that with Emery coming in, the defence will need to be reinforced:

Sokratis may not be someone who will transform the Gunners' fortunes at the back, but he's an upgrade on a number of centre-backs at the club and more dependable than Koscielny in terms of fitness.

Arsenal fans will be hoping to see the club spend more money on this area of the team in the transfer window to secure a defensive talisman. Sokratis may not be that, but given the cost of the deal and his pedigree in one of Europe's elite leagues, it could be a savvy purchase to begin a huge summer for the Gunners.