Podolski ‘to Arsenal in £140k-a-week deal’

Lukas Podolski to Arsenal is said to be a done deal with reports suggesting the striker has agreed a contract worth £140,000-a-week. Bundesliga club Cologne are said to have accepted accepted a £10.3million bid for the Germany striker.

German football expert Raf Honigstein has used his Twitter account to report that the deal is indeed signed and the player will pick up the bumper paypacket plus a signing on fee.

Podolski is now due at Emirates once the Bundesliga season ends and will sign a four-year deal, reports claim.

It was hardly a secret that AW wanted the player and Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker admitted on German television on Wednesday that he had been asked by his international team-mate about  the Gunners.

He said: “He has been very interested for the past few weeks. He has sent me a number of text messages, and I have told him this is a great place to work and Arsenal are an amazing club.”

Polish-born Podolski is in his second spell at Cologne after a three-year period at Bayern Munich.

CARL ELDRIDGE – Follow me on Twitter @eldomedia