The Gunners miss out on the Argentine whilst the Reds ‘keeper leaves after becoming second choice.
Outspoken Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis has confirmed that the club will sign Liverpool’s Jose Reina and Arsenal target Gonzalo Higuain from Real Madrid.
Higuain e Reina hanno superato le visite mediche e presto si aggregheranno al gruppo
— AurelioDeLaurentiis (@ADeLaurentiis) July 24, 2013
The tweet reads; “Higuain and Reina have passed a medical and soon will join the group.”
Reina will link-up with former boss Rafael Benitez, who is now in charge at the Stadio San Paolo, whilst Higuain signs on a permanent deal believed to be worth £34.5.
The two players will be presented in Naples officially on Monday as De Laurentiis was also keen to reveal on Twitter.
Lunedì sera faremo una grande festa al San Paolo. Potrete conoscere i nuovi calciatori e non solo
— AurelioDeLaurentiis (@ADeLaurentiis) July 24, 2013
“On Monday evening we’ll have a big party at the San Paolo. You will learn about the new players.”
The news will come as a blow to the Gunners, who had previously targeted the Argentinian striker as a summer transfer, although were out-priced by Madrid and have instead turned their attention to Liverpool’s Luis Suarez.
At Anfield it could be a double departure if Suarez leaves for north London along with Reina, with the ‘keeper not happy with playing second fiddle to new signing Simon Mignolet.
The Spaniard was signed by Benitez during the 53-year-old’s tenure with the Reds back in 2005 for £8.6m and went onto become regarded as one of the best stoppers in the Premier League.
However, the 30-year-old has clearly fallen out of favour under current manager Brendan Rodgers with the Northern Irishman signing Mignolet and leaves Merseyside after eight years of service.
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