Arsenal have agreed a deal to sign Sao Paulo winger Marquinhos, football.london understands. The 19-year-old is set to join the club this summer following extensive talks with technical director Edu and will cost around £3m.
However, a report from Brazil claims that the transfer could be the start of a partnership between both clubs. That's according to Globo Esporte, who say the Gunners 'seek to build a relationship' with Sao Paulo similar to that of Ajax's which led to the transfers of David Neres and Antony.
The partnership would see the Brazilian side become Arsenal's 'feeder club', meaning several exchanges between the two could follow Marquinhos' move in the future. A 'feeder club' is one that provides experience through training and game time to younger players, with an agreement that its most successful stars can leave to join a team in a more prestigious league which, in this particular case, would be Arsenal.
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If a partnership does indeed come to fruition, it could turn out to be a very positive development for the Gunners. Sao Paulo is one of the biggest clubs in Brazil and has been home to some of the most exciting talents in football including Ederson, Cafu, Casemiro, Kaka, Rivaldo and the aforementioned Antony.
Those familiar with Brazilian football and Marquinhos especially, view him as a player with bags of potential. It's safe to say he's still fairly raw at the moment, but he possesses all of the qualities to follow in the footsteps of his predecessors.
It's not yet known whether or not Marquinhos will be part of Mikel Arteta's first-team plans next season, but the youngster could be given the chance to impress in pre-season before a final decision is made. Gabriel Martinelli was signed from Brazilian side Ituano in 2019, and despite playing at a considerably lower level than the Premier League, he took to English football extremely well.
Martinelli is now a senior Brazil international and has established himself as one of Arsenal's most gifted young players. There's no reason why Marquinhos cannot follow that up with similar success, but encouragement can still be taken from his new teammates' progress if a more patient approach is required.
