Martin Zubimendi shows his true colours with emotional message sent as Arsenal transfer imminent

Martin Zubimendi played his final game in front of the Real Sociedad home fans over the weekend with his summer transfer to Arsenal on the verge of being finalised.

football.london reported earlier this year that a deal for the defensive midfielder was in a good place ahead of the upcoming trading period and that was confirmed by widespread reports in mid-May which revealed an agreement in principle was reached.

A decision must now be made on

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Doing the latter will allow Arsenal to pay for his services using instalments which would be better for profit and sustainably rules alongside having more of their summer budget available for other signings. football.london understands that

Multiple exits are expected with Jorginho and Kierney Tierney leaving at the end of their respective contracts while the likes of Oleksandr Zinchenko, Reiss Nelson and Fabio Vieira should depart permanently.

Contract extensions for some key first-team stars will also be important with talks on to give new deals out to William Saliba and Thomas Partey. The latter will depart as a free agent if he does not agree fresh terms, but .

Just before the Gunners' entered the advanced stages for his signature, Zubimendi hinted that he would be leaving his boyhood club soon.

“We get used to so many good things happening to me, but sometimes you have to slow down, look back and realise everything you’re experiencing and everything you’ve achieved," he said earlier this month.

“Luckily, I’ve had the chance to experience many good things with Real Sociedad, many dreams come true. Europa League, Champions League, a title. I couldn’t ask for more.”

While the La Liga season concludes next weekend, Zubimendi played what will likely be his final home match for Sociedad on Sunday. The 26-year-old delivered an impressive midfield performance in their 3-2 victory over Girona.

According to , there were shouts of, "Zubi, stay! Zubi, stay" at full-time, but it certainly looks as though he has already made a final decision as he simply applauded the supporters before promptly heading down the tunnel.

Sociedad's final game comes away at Real Madrid and a positive result could see them finish tenth but it is more likely they lose and could therefore drop down to twelfth if Valencia beat a Real Betis side likely more focused on their Conference League final against Chelsea a few days later.