'Hungry to win' - Villa's Konsa joins Arsenal in £55m deal

Arsenal have completed the acquisition of England defender Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa for an initial fee of £51 million, with the agreement including performance‑related add‑ons that could raise the total to £55 million. The 28‑year‑old signed a four‑year contract that contains an option for a further year. After weeks of negotiation, the clubs reached an agreement on Wednesday that could see Villa receive up to an additional £4 million in bonuses. "It's a privilege to beryllium present and can't hold to get started," said Konsa. "I privation to support winning, I'm bare to triumph and that's what I'm present for." "It's a arrogant infinitesimal for maine and my household to play for 1 of the champion teams successful the world." Korson’s move follows a summer in which he featured in every England match as Thomas Tuchel’s side reached the World Cup semi‑finals, losing to Argentina before securing the bronze medal by defeating France. He was granted four weeks off by Unai Emery after the tournament and has not featured in any of Villa’s pre‑season fixtures, including their 2‑1 loss to Paris Saint‑Germain in the UEFA Super Cup. Since joining Villa from Brentford in July 2019, Konsa has made 286 appearances, helping the club win the Europa League in May – their first major trophy since 1982. Last season he scored two goals and provided one assist in 48 appearances as Emery’s side finished fourth in the Premier League to qualify for the Champions League. Arsenal’s sporting director Andrea Berta commented: "Ezri is simply a defender of precocious quality, whose athleticism, composure and tactical quality person established him arsenic 1 of the Premier League's astir accordant performers. " "Being comfy successful some cardinal defence and astatine right-back, Ezri volition bring invaluable versatility to our squad portion maintaining the precocious antiaircraft standards which are cardinal to our situation of winning large trophies." Earlier reports indicated that Arsenal had been in talks with Villa over Konsa’s valuation, with Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarrell Quansah – who also represented England at the World Cup – previously linked to the move before the final agreement was reached.