Arsenal close to landing versatile defender from Ukraine?

Arsenal are reportedly close to reaching an agreement to sign defender Mykola Matviyenko from Shakhtar Donetsk.

The Gunners have officially announced the purchase of Pablo Mari on loan from Flamengo but there are still said to be eyeing more defensive reinforcements.

The north London side are said to be entirely focused on loan signings before the deadline on Friday and TEAM1 claims that they are on the cusp of landing Matviyenko from the ranks of Shakhtar.

Matviyenko is capable of playing in any position in the backline but over the past year, he has generally featured for Shakhtar in a central defensive role from where he has earned plenty of plaudits.

The 23-year-old has been closely tracked by Mikel Arteta since he was the assistant coach at Manchester City, given Shakhtar have come against the Cityzens in the Champions League on six occasions since 2016.

Aside from Matviyenko, the Gunners are also close to signing of Cedric Soares from Southampton. The Athletic's David Ornstein has confirmed that a temporary deal is in place and he should sign for the club in the next 24 hours.