Werder Bremen's German international defender Per Mertesacker is set to undergo a medical at Arsenal.
The 26-year-old centre-back is captain for the Bundesliga side and although he is on international duty has been allowed to travel to London.
Arsenal's pursuit of Mertesacker, who is 6ft 6in and has 75 caps for Germany, could end their interest in Bolton defender Gary Cahill.
But the Gunners are set to sign Brazilian left-back Andre Santos.
The move by Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger to bolster his defence comes after they were hammered 8-2 by Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday.
- Born: 29 Sep 1984, Hannover
- Height: 6ft 6in
- Previous clubs: TSV Pattensen (1988-1995); Hannover 96 (1995-2006); Werder Bremen (2006- )
- Germany caps: 75
They have also recently sold left-back Gael Clichy to Manchester City, and right-back Emmanuel Eboue to Turkish club Galatasary, while on Tuesday Armand Traore joined Queens Park Rangers.
Centre-back Thomas Vermaelen was injured for the trip to Old Trafford and missed most of last season with an Achilles tendon injury.
Mertesacker was part of the German team which beat England 4-1 at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa last summer.
And he has been recalled to the squad to face Austria in their European Championship qualifier on Friday after a heel injury suffered at the end of last season.
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