Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is making a shock £40 million move for Bayern Munich star Franck Ribery.
The Daily Star Sunday says Gunners boss Arsene Wenger believes he is now close to pulling off one of the transfer coups of the summer and winning the race to sign the Bayern Munich winger.
Until the last couple of weeks Ribery, 26, was destined for one of Europe's giants - with Man United, Barcelona and Real Madrid all in the hunt.
But despite the huge interest and several offers of around £30m, Bayern stubbornly refused to sell for anything less than £40m.
And that suddenly left Arsenal in pole position, even though Wenger has long made it clear he cannot compete with his rivals when it comes to buying the biggest names in the game.
Yet an offer of £30m - plus £10m-rated Danish hitman Nicklas Bendtner to make up the difference - appears to have struck a chord with new Bayern coach Louis van Gaal.
A source close to Arsenal's top brass confirmed: "Ribery was on the agenda at a recent board meeting - and it could even be a done deal by now. We're very optimistic."