Arsenal boosted as Gabriel Paulista left out of Villareal squad ahead of prospective move

Arsenal have received a massive boost in their pursuance of Villareal defender Gabriel Paulista after he was left out of the squad set to face Levante over the weekend, according to the Daily Mail.

The Brazilian has been linked with a move to the Emirates in January, ridden by work permit issues as the 24-year-old does not have an EU passport and has not been capped by his national team as yet.

It seems that the problems have been ironed out and the player has been left out ahead of a prospective move to the Emirates. The Gunners are reported to have met his release clause, which stands at £15m and the transfer could be completed next week, before the transfer window closes.

Arsene Wenger was set to make a plea to the FA, to let the defender move to north London amid a major crisis at the back for the Gunners, who were without their first choice back four for a major part of the season.

With Laurent Koscielny suffering from acute Achilles problem, which could spiral out of proportion and keep the defender out of action, the Gunners' hopes of reaching the top-four could be hurt.

Wenger revealed that he would do everything to complete the transfer, especially with Arsenal likely to move to other targets in the summer, where a wider array of players will be available.

The Gunners have some important games coming up, both in the Premier League and in Europe and will want that the player blends as soon as possible with the team, to get the maximum out of him.

Arsenal travel to White Hart Lane to face Tottenham next weekend, with Spurs currently only two points behind them and a positive result there would lay the groundwork for the future.

They also face Monaco in the knockout stage of the Champions League as they look to progress into the quarter finals for the first time since 2011.