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Report: Mkhitaryan agrees to join Arsenal in straight swap with Sanchez

Dan Mullan / Getty Images Sport / Getty

Arsenal has completed the paperwork to sign Henrikh Mkhitaryan, reports BBC Sport's David Ornstein, freeing Alexis Sanchez to join Manchester United in a straight swap.

No transfer fees are involved in the transaction, Ornstein added.

Mkhitaryan is now expected to undergo a medical in north London sometime in the next two days.

The report comes just hours after Jose Mourinho said United was "close" to finalising the signing of Sanchez.

Related - Mourinho thinks Sanchez deal will happen: 'Expect soon or never'

The fate of the deal seemed to rest on whether Mkhitaryan accepted a move to Arsenal. The 28-year-old was held out of United's 1-0 win over Burnley as the Red Devils and Gunners hammered out the final details of the transfer.

Swap deals are a rare sight among clubs in the top five European leagues, where fees have been paid at a record rate. However, with Sanchez entering the final months of his contract and Mkhitaryan often stuck in the stands, both teams stood to gain a player ready for a change of scenery.

Manchester City was considered the favourite to land Sanchez until United entered the discussion this month. Unprepared to wage a bidding war for the former Barcelona winger, City left United a clear path to sign the 29-year-old.

Sanchez reportedly agreed to a package with United worth an astounding £180 million, including agents' fees, wages, image rights, and taxes.

Unlike Sanchez, Mkhitaryan had two-and-a-half years remaining on his contract at Old Trafford. Despite impressing in the second half of the 2016-17 campaign, he has made just 11 starts in the Premier League.

Mourinho has favoured the likes of Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard over Mkhitaryan, even though the Portuguese made the Armenian international one of his first signings upon his appointment in June 2016.

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