London Colney (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger confirmed the club were close to completing transfers on Friday, amid reports they are poised to sign Germany centre-back Shkodran Mustafi and Spanish striker Lucas Perez.
British press reports claim Mustafi, 24, will sign from Valencia for around 35 million pounds ($46.2 million, 40.9 million euros), with Perez, 27, set to cost around 17 million pounds from Deportivo La Coruna.
Both players will reportedly undergo medical examinations on Friday.
“We are working on the deals,” Wenger said. “We are not close enough to announce today that they will sign for us. Will we sign anybody before the end of the transfer window? I am 99 percent confident.”
Should both players complete their transfers, Arsenal’s spending for the close season will be close to 100 million pounds.
They have already signed Swiss international Granit Xhaka from Borussia Moenchengladbach and young pair Rob Holding and Takuma Asano.
Wenger has come under pressure from the club’s fans to bring in new players, with supporters chanting “Spend some money!” during last weekend’s 0-0 draw at Leicester City.
But Wenger said he would not be influenced by the fans’ demands.
“I’m happy when our supporters are happy, but my job is to make the right decisions,” the Frenchman told reporters at Arsenal’s London Colney training centre.
“If that is exactly similar to the contract of the players and that maintains the supporters being happy, that is even better. I focus first on making the right decisions for the club.”
