Transfer Rumour: Arsenal and Chelsea emerge as suitors to land Borussia Dortmund defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos in the summer

Chelsea and Arsenal are reportedly set to vie for the signature of Borussia Dortmund centre-back Sokratis Papastathopoulos.

According to Dave Fraser of The Sun, Premier League giants Chelsea and Arsenal are hoping to land Borussia Dortmund centre-back Sokratis Papastathopoulos in the summer, with a bid to strengthen their respective defences.

The Greece international has been a mainstay in the Dortmund defence since moving from Werder Bremen in 2013. He has been a rock at the back for the German club, but is now considering a move away from the Signal Iduna Park.

Sokratis appears to be frustrated by the lack of silverware he’s won at the club. At the end of the 2016-17 campaign he stated that he is nearing the twilight of his career, and it is growing increasingly important for him to win a league title.

Despite winning the DFB Pokal this past season, it has been far from a success for Borussia Dortmund. They finished a staggering 18 points behind Bundesliga winners Bayern Munich, and had left it until the last day of the campaign to secure their participation in next year’s UEFA Champions League.

Thus, he feels the time is right to move to a bigger club, and now has a couple of suitors in the form of Chelsea and Arsenal. While the Gunners will not participate in next season’s Champions League, Arsene Wenger has promised that the club will attract quality players.

The North London club had severe injury concerns at centre-back this season as captain Per Mertesacker was out for almost the entirety of the campaign, before he recovered towards the back end to win the FA Cup.

Shkodran Mustafi too, looked promising at the start, but an injury derailed his progress, leaving Wenger in dire need of adding quality to the back line. The Greek fits the bill for the Frenchman, and it remains to be seen whether an official bid is made by the club.

However, should Chelsea make a similar offer, Sokratis is expected to move to Stamford Bridge as the Blues will offer him Champions League football. The 29-year-old’s arrival could see him replace Gary Cahill on the left side of Chelsea’s back three.

The Borussia Dortmund stalwart is good with the ball at his feet, and has a good footballing brain – something manager Antonio Conte wants in his players, given the nature of formation the Italian prefers. Sokratis would be a quality signing, and will also see Conte add to the depth of his squad.

That being said, Chelsea have been linked heavily to Virgil van Dijk and Jerome Boateng, and the duo are understood to be on Conte’s priority list. In case of a failed pursuit for them, Chelsea could then consider tabling a formal offer for Sokratis.