Joe Willock is close to completing his move from Arsenal to Newcastle after arriving on Tyneside to undergo a medical.
Head coach Steve Bruce confirmed the 21-year-old midfielder was at the club’s Benton training headquarters on Friday morning ready to sign a six-year deal for a fee understood to be significantly in excess of £20million.
Speaking at his pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday’s Premier League opener against West Ham, Bruce admitted the club had to remain patient as Gunners boss Mikel Arteta decided what he wanted to do with the player.
He said: “He’s having a medical as we speak, so we hope that comes through OK and he’ll be able to train with us this afternoon.
“We knew that we’d have to be patient. From the very last game of the season, we’d made it pretty obvious that if Joe was going to become available, then we would try to secure him.
“To start with, I knew Mikel would want to have a look at him in pre-season – that’s only normal, to have a look at your young players…
