Borussia Dortmund Chief Claims Sokratis' Arsenal Move Is Not 'Finalised' as Club Eye Replacements

Borussia Dortmund's sporting director Michael Zorc has confirmed that Sokratis Papastathopoulos' proposed move to Arsenal still hasn't been completed, but the German outfit are closing in on a replacement for the Greece international.

The 30-year-old defender has been heavily linked with a move to north London this summer, where he will have the chance to link up with former teammates Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, as well as chief scout Sven Mislintat.

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But Sokratis' long-awaited arrival at Arsenal has been delayed for a number of weeks. Sky Sports reporter Dharmesh Sheth recently claimed that the defender would be officially announced on July 1, however, Dortmund's Zorc has stated that a deal hasn't even been completed.

"It tends to go there, that's right. But things are not completely finalised yet," Zorc told Revier Sport. "And I will not work with you now and talk about the rumour mill, which includes 27 new BVB players since the end of May.

"In the meantime, we are having fun ourselves and planning. We have clear ideas and I am very sure that we will put together a very good team.

"This will not necessarily be the case until the start of the season, because the coach wants to make an impression on the players who are under contract with us."

Although Zorc is adamant that Sokratis' move to Arsenal is still far from completion, Borussia Dortmund have already lined up a replacement for the veteran defender.

Reports in Germany suggest that Dortmund are close to completing a €25m deal for Mainz defender Abdou Diallo - a former transfer target for Arsenal. The 22-year-old is one of the most highly rated players in the Bundesliga and will become the club's fifth signing of the summer.