arsenal news

   Arsenal have completed the signing of Portugal defender Cedric Soares from Southampton. The 28-year-old has joined Mikel Arteta's side on loan until the end of the season but he only has six months remaining on his contract at Southampton. He will compete alongside Hector Bellerin for the right-back slot with the Gunners and revealed he nearly joined the club previously in his career, but did not specify when. This has been the expectation of  so many fans, they have demanded for a proper cover for the right full back instead of using Niles in the wrong position which has cost the team some few times. 'We were close a few years ago, so it's not the first time,' Cedric said upon the completion of his move. 'It didn't happen that time but now thank God it came true. I'm super happy.  'It was important for me in my career to come here. Southampton gave me the opportunity to play in the Premier League but obviously it's amazing

The deal for the Spaniard is worth up to £12m, with Arsenal paying a £4m loan fee upfront while having the option to make the move permanent for £8m in the summer. The deal was almost not going through due to some disagreement between the two club but at the end Arsenal got their man to fill in the gap in this defensive crisis they have. The 26-year-old becomes Mikel Arteta's first signing since taking over as Arsenal head coach in December. "When I spoke to my agent, it was a big thing that Arsenal were interested in me," Mari told the Arsenal website. "This is one of the best clubs in the world, so I'm absolutely delighted to be joining. I'm really looking forward to playing in this jersey and helping my team. "Right now I want to focus on the day-to-day side of things. I think we need to put the plans to one side for now because the most important thing is to take things one day at a time and focus on achieving short-term goals. "