Stoke City star set to move to Liverpool ahead of Arsenal.
Stoke City goalkeeper Asmir Begovic is close to agreeing a move to Liverpool this summer, according to Bosnian newspaper Dnevni Avaz.
Arsenal were previously considered favourites to sign the 25 year-old, but Avaz claim that Liverpool’s speed in securing Begovic’s signature has proved crucial in the race to land him.
The Bosnia international has declared himself open to joining a bigger club, but has had a single stipulation: he wants to take part in a full preseason to best prepare himself for a campaign with his new team-mates.
“I want to begin preparing 10th July, when all the players of Liverpool start,” Avaz claim Begovic told bosses on Merseyside.
Arsenal retain hope that they could sign the shot stopper, but the Reds are confident of bringing him to Merseyside.
Gunners boss Arsene Wenger has been unsure about his goalkeeper situation for much of the season.
For the crunch UEFA Champions League match against Bayern Munich in March, he dropped Wojciech Szczesny in favour of the notoriously error prone Lukasz Fabianski, who had previously replaced the notoriously error prone Manuel Almunia.
Szczesny has since won back his place, due to his fellow Pole Fabianski suffering an injury, and whilst his exclusion from the starting XI may have given him the wake up call he needed, it appears Wenger is still in the market for a more experienced custodian.
Liverpool’s move for Begovic will call into question the future of Pepe Reina, who has been regularly linked with Barcelona.
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