Arsenal Left Frustrated as Napoli Close In on Brazilian Goalkeeper – Report

Arsenal appear to have missed out on signing Queens Park Rangers goalkeeper Julio Cesar after reports in the Italian media claim he is on the verge of agreeing a deal with Napoli.

Yesterday it was widely reported that Arsenal were ready to firm up their interest in the Brazilian by making an offer of £1.5m as manager Arsene Wenger looks to find a more experienced keeper to compete with Wojciech Szczesny.

Cesar was said to be keen on the move in order to remain in London but it seems as though he could now seal a return to Italy, with Sky Italia reporting that Napoli have agreed a deal with QPR to take the keeper on loan for a season.

QPR are apparently happy to allow him to join the Serie A side and all that remains to be sorted is agreeing personal terms as Napoli are currently unwilling to match the £70,000-a-week he currently earns in west London.

Napoli want the deal to go through in the coming days as they are on the verge of allowing 36 year old keeper Morgan De Sanctis to leave the club in order to join Roma.

Cesar excelled last season at relegated QPR and helped Brazil win the Confederations Cup last month. His performances have clearly caught the eye of new Napoli boss Rafa Benitez who worked with the keeper during his short time at Inter Milan.

It would be a major blow to Arsenal if they miss out on Cesar as it is believed that Wenger had made the Brazil international his number one choice since the start of the summer.

Despite the Gunners boss making it clear he wants to do plenty of business this summer he has thus far only completed a deal for France Under-20 international Yaya Sanogo.

There have been plenty of reports suggesting that Arsenal have bid for Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, while the club are also said to be in negotiations with Real Madrid over Gonzalo Higuain, but nothing has been completed.