England defender Ezri Konsa is set to join Arsenal, the Press Association understands, as a summer of change continues at Aston Villa.
The 28-year-old, who played a full part in England's third-placed finish at the World Cup, is expected to undergo a medical in north London on Thursday after a deal, reported to be £51 million ($69.4 million), was agreed.
Villa centre-back Konsa has been a long-time target of Arsenal, who are strengthening their squad as they look to defend their Premier League title.
The two clubs have been apart in valuation but a fee has been agreed and the deal appears primed to conclude by the end of the week.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta wants to bolster his options in defence after William Saliba sustained a back injury in action for France at the World Cup. Saliba elected against an operation but faces an extended period of rehabilitation.
Fellow defender Jurrien Timber was unable to play for the Netherlands at the World Cup and did not feature in Arsenal's Community Shield win against Manchester City last Sunday.
Konsa joined Villa in 2019 and has made close to 300 appearances, winning the Europa League last season and helping the club finish in the top four of the Premier League twice in the last three years.
His impending exit is another blow for Villa, with Konsa set to follow fellow key players Morgan Rogers and Youri Tielemans out of the door.
There are huge doubts over the future of goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, whose move to Juventus fell through earlier this week, while Villa have rejected interest in striker Ollie Watkins from Al Hilal.
However, they did earlier complete the signings of goalkeeper Zion Suzuki and left-back Matteo Ruggeri.
Should Konsa's transfer go through, he could make his Arsenal debut against Villa, with the Gunners facing Unai Emery's side in the second game of their title defence on August 31.
He would become Arsenal's fifth signing of the summer, following Bruno Guimaraes' £75 million switch from Newcastle and Christos Tzolis' £34 million arrival from Club Brugge. Piero Hincapie also turned his temporary deal into a full-time switch, while goalkeeper Illan Meslier joined from Leeds as a free signing.
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