Arsenal close to selling Gabriel Jesus to Barcelona as Julian Alvarez future remains unclear

Arsenal are on the verge of selling Gabriel Jesus to Barcelona for £8.57m, with the Brazilian striker due to undergo a medical on Monday, as the club races to finalise its transfer business before the September 1 deadline.

Journalist Fabrizio Romano reported that Arsenal and Barcelona have reached an agreement for the 29-year-old, with add-ons included in the deal. Jesus had been training away from Mikel Arteta’s main squad after being deemed surplus to requirements at the Emirates, having earlier been linked with a move to Napoli before Barcelona emerged as his destination.

The sale of Jesus forms part of a busy window for Arsenal, who have already added five players this summer. Piero Hincapie arrived in a £34.5m permanent deal, Illan Meslier joined as a free agent, Christos Tzolis cost £34m, Bruno Guimaraes was signed for £75m, and Ezri Konsa came in for £55m. Leandro Trossard and Gabriel Martinelli have both departed, with further outgoings expected before the window closes.

The situation surrounding Julian Alvarez is less straightforward. The Atletico Madrid forward returned to first-team training on Sunday after missing three sessions last week due to what the club described as an “indisposition”, before training alone on Friday. He was also absent from Diego Simeone’s squad for Saturday’s 3-1 win at Sevilla.

Alvarez had originally made clear his desire to join Barcelona this summer, but Atletico blocked a move to their La Liga rivals, leaving Arsenal as the most likely destination. The Spanish club were reported to be open to a £128m sale of their unsettled talisman, and Alvarez was said to have been given until Sunday to decide whether to push through a transfer or remain in Madrid.

His return to training has raised questions over whether the 26-year-old has opted to stay, with recent reports suggesting he had no intention of returning to England. Whether that position has shifted — or whether his reappearance in training is simply procedural — is expected to become clearer in the final hours of the window.