Arsenal have reportedly reached a total agreement to sign Raheem Sterling on loan from Chelsea and are working to get their deadline-day documents over the line in time.
After a sensational swap deal involving Manchester United's Jadon Sancho did not come to fruition, Sterling was instead linked with a surprise move to Arsenal in the last knockings of the window.
A deal was considered highly unlikely at the start of the day, due to Chelsea demanding a fee, Arsenal not being willing to dip into their war chest and Sterling struggling to negotiate his own exit from the Blues.
However, the two clubs reached an accord over a loan transfer late into the night, and according to Fabrizio Romano, a deal is now on the verge of completion after Sterling arrived at Arsenal's training ground for a medical.
While the English transfer window closed at 11pm, clubs have until 1am to get transfers over the line if they have submitted deal sheets to the Premier League, which is believed to be the case in Sterling's circumstances.
The 29-year-old quickly let it be known that he was open to joining the Gunners and reuniting with Mikel Arteta, whom he worked under while the Spaniard was second-in-command to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
Sterling boasts 19 goals and 12 assists from 81 matches in a Chelsea jersey, but he was told by Enzo Maresca a few weeks ago that he was not part of his plans for the 2024-25 season.
Ben Knapton
