Vinicius Junior and Cristhian Mosquera
Arsenal have taken a big leap towards making a new signing after Fabrizio Romano confirmed another piece of the puzzle has been completed towards their four-player transfer spree.
Along with Fulham and Nottingham Forest, Arsenal are one of only three clubs in the Premier League who haven’t announced a signing still for the summer 2025 transfer window. However, the outlook is about to drastically shift, with as many as four arrivals imminent.
Arsenal are aiming to finalise the signings of Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad, Kepa Arrizabalaga from Chelsea and Christian Norgaard from Brentford soon.
Romano’s latest update is about the fourth target they’re hoping to complete their first batch of summer signings: Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera.
Arsenal recently opened talks with Valencia for Mosquera, but their opening bid of €14m (£12m) was rejected.
Now, Arsenal are taking things up a notch. Romano has revealed they are ready to submit their second offer, which could be worth more than €20m (£17m).
The big update that could swing things in Arsenal’s favour is that they have reached a ‘full agreement’ with Mosquera on personal terms.
Since the 21-year-old clearly wants to join Arsenal, they will hope their latest bid will be the one to force Valencia into a sale.
If Mosquera does cost a minimum of £17m, he would slot in between Zubimendi (£55m) and Norgaard (£10m plus up to £5m in add-ons) for spending outlay. Kepa, meanwhile, will be the cheapest of them all at just £5m.
Arsenal transfer news: Gyokeres meeting, Saka push
While Arsenal are starting to get more busy in the transfer market, they still have other areas of their squad they’ll need to add to once these four deals are wrapped up.
For example, getting a new striker remains a priority, with Viktor Gyokeres (Sporting CP) and Benjamin Sesko (RB Leizpig) both being heavily linked.
On the Gyokeres front, there has been an update in Portugal about the player demanding showdown talks as he pushes for a move to the Emirates Stadium.
In other news, Bukayo Saka has supposedly been playing a pivotal role in a different Arsenal transfer pursuit.
It’s been claimed that Saka has privately told an attacking midfielder on Arsenal’s radar to choose them over north London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.
Elsewhere, Arsenal continue to be linked with Real Madrid winger Rodrygo. Recent reports have shared the three-step formula of their potential bid.
Who is Cristhian Mosquera?
Born in Alicante, part of the Valencian region of Spain, Mosquera is a right-footed centre-back.
He spent five years in Valencia’s academy and two playing for their B team, before putting in a best-in-class display on his first-team debut at the age of 17 years and six months in the Copa del Rey in January 2022. It earned him the chance to debut in LaLiga a few days later.
Mosquera has been a permanent first-team squad member for Valencia since 2023, registering more than 100 appearances. He also played for Spain’s under-23s at the Paris Olympics.
Owing to his background in futsal as a youth player, Mosquera is good on the ball, but he is crucially strong and good in the air.
His usual role for Valencia has been as the middle centre-back in a back three, but he has also played as a right-back on occasion.
In the 2024-25 LaLiga season, Mosquera ranked in the 96th percentile of centre-backs for ball recoveries per 90 minutes (5.15) and boasted a pass completion rate of 90.5%.
He started 37 of Valencia’s 38 league matches and finished 36 of them as well, serving as a key figure in their resurgence under Carlos Corberan.
But Mosquera now looks ready for the next step in his career, taking his well-rounded talents onto a new stage.