Douglas Luiz could be bringing his set-piece prowess to Arsenal in the coming hours.
Less than a day removed from scoring against the Gunners - directly from a corner - in a 2-1 defeat for Aston Villa, there's strong talk of the Brazil midfielder becoming Mikel Arteta and Edu's sixth, and perhaps final, signing of what has been a busy summer transfer window.
Whilst sources at Villa remain adamant that Luiz is not for sale and the club will rebuff any approaches made for the midfielder, football.london understands the 24-year-old is among a list of players that Arsenal have looked at, with January 2022 the last time he was seriously considered as a potential signing.
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However, with Thomas Partey and Mohamed Elneny sidelined through injury, the north London outfit's hand may have been forced in the transfer market and they appear to have been handed a major boost in their attempts to sign Luiz with The Athletic reporting that Villa have had a £12.9million bid accepted for Wolves' Leander Dendoncker.
Arteta would have got a closer look at the prospective signing at the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday night when Luiz was introduced to the action in the 73rd minute, although the Spaniard wouldn't have been happy with what the midfielder did with his second touch of the ball.
Sneaking an effort into the near post directly from a corner - a goal that has been hotly debated amongst some Arsenal fans on social media and in forums - this was the second time the 24-year-old has scored in this fashion this season having done so as recently as last week in Villa's Carabao Cup tie against Bolton.
And this routine is not a fluke. In fact, footage has emerged of the midfielder finding the net directly from a corner in a pre-season friendly against Walsall earlier in the summer, so it shouldn't be much of a surprise that he has gone on to repeat the trick twice when it really counts.
Judging by a recent Instagram post from the Aston Villa official account which shows Luiz scoring from a corner in a training session - which he has since shared on his own account, the caption that reads: "Practice makes perfect" sums up just how dedicated the Brazilian is to this feat.
Now, if Luiz does join Arsenal, the fact he has already shown on two occasions this season just how effective he can be on corners - especially from the left-hand side - where he can swing the ball into the box, or better yet into the back of the net, with his right foot means he could be on corner duty before too long.
At present, Gabriel Martinelli seems to have that role for the Gunners. And his deliveries - whilst they haven't brought a goal directly - have led to goals for Gabriel Jesus against Leicester City and Gabriel Magalhaes in the comeback win over Fulham last weekend.
But the 21-year-old could soon have fresh competition on his hands from a fellow Brazilian if Arsenal are successful in their attempts to seal a £23m transfer for Luiz before tonight's 11pm deadline.
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