According to sources in Germany, Serhou Guirassy, a striker for Stuttgart, has turned down the opportunity to sign with Arsenal in favor of joining Borussia Dortmund.
Before the summer transfer market opened, the 28-year-old had garnered a lot of attention due to his 28 goals in the Bundesliga the previous year.
Among the Premier League teams expressing interest in Guirassy were Arsenal, Chelsea, and Manchester United; however, Chelsea withdrew from consideration earlier this week.
Alongside Romelu Lukaku of Chelsea, AC Milan had Guirassy on their summer shortlist as well.
Guirassy had already indicated that he wanted to leave Stuttgart this summer and is available due to a relatively modest release clause of just under €20 million (£16.9m).
This week, reports surfaced that Dortmund was worried about Arsenal’s potential danger in the signing of Guirassy.
However, Stuttgarter Nachrichten reports that Guirassy has chosen to join Dortmund and has reached an agreement with last season’s Champions League finalists.
According to the report, Guirassy’s salary in Stuttgart, which was worth £65,000 a week, has almost tripled to Dortmund.
Additionally, it’s believed that Dortmund made a signing-on offer that rival teams were unable to match, totaling more than €10 million (£8.4 million).
Dortmund’s deal, which includes signing-on incentive, salaries, and transfer fee, is valued at somewhat more than €60 million (£50.7 million).
When Benjamin Sesko made the decision to stay at RB Leipzig earlier this month, Arsenal suffered yet another setback in their pursuit of a new striker.