Albert Samby Lokonga joined Arsenal from Anderlecht on a permanent transfer. The 21-year-old midfielder joined the Belgian club's youth system in 2014 at the age of 15 and signed his first professional contract in November 2017.
He made his debut for Anderlecht in December 2017 and has been a regular player for Anderlecht for the past two seasons, making a total of 78 appearances. As a Belgian u21 national team player, he made his debut for the Belgian national team when he came off the bench against Greece in March 2021.
Arsenal Technical Director Edu said: "It is delighted that Albert has signed with us, a lot of teams are interested in him and he is a big target for us. He's the player we've been watching and he's going to inject depth into our midfield. We look forward to his continued progress with us. ”
Manager Mikel Arteta said: "Lokunga is a very smart player and he has been very mature in his formative years. He received good coaching from Kompany and the team at Anderlecht. I know Vincent (Kompany) very well and he spoke highly of The positive impact Lokunga has had on Anderlecht in recent seasons. We believe this lad is ready for the next phase of development and we are looking forward to this new player helping our team to break through with his ability and performance. ”
The midfielder will meet his new team-mates within days of completing the quarantine rules for international players entering the UK. For the new season, Lokunga will wear the number 23 shirt with Sambi's name on the back.
(Editor: Yao Fan)