Gunners making contingency plans in case Gabriel Paulista isn’t granted a work permit.
Arsenal are keeping an eye on reported Manchester United target Aleksandar Dragovic of Ukrainian giants Dynamo Kiev, report the Mail, with the Gunners making contingency plans in case Brazilian central defender Gabriel Paulista is not granted a work permit to complete his £15 million move from Villarreal.
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Gabriel was left out of the matchday squad for Villarreal’s La Liga clash against struggling Levante at El Madrigal on Saturday evening, with his side announcing that a deal had been agreed with Arsenal for the transfer of the former Vitoria man ahead of the game.
Arsenal will still have to hope that Gabriel is awarded a work permit at a hearing next week, however, as he is yet to make his international bow for Brazil, meaning that Arsene Wenger and his staff have had to sound out potential alternatives if their move for Gabriel is scuppered by red tape.
That contingency plan would appear to be Dragovic, who is having a fine time of things in the Ukrainian league and already has more than 30 senior caps for Austria to his name despite being aged just 23. Like Paulista, Dragovic is a no-nonsense defender, who prides himself on his physicality and tenacity.