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LONDON.— Arsenal have completed the signing of Nice goalkeeper David Ospina for £3.2million on a long-term contract .
Arsenal also announced their fourth signing of the summer with the shock transfer of Calum Chambers for £16million.The youngster from Southampton can play right back, but what’s interesting about the move is that he’s also played one game at centre-back.

It’s believed he will act as fourth choice centre-back cover as Arsenal push to bring in another centre back should Thomas Vermaelen move on (which is not a certainty).

Meanwhile, Ospina alerted interest from the Gunners following a series of impressive performances for Colombia at the World Cup – helping them to reach the quarter-finals before losing to hosts Brazil.

Arsène Wenger said of the club’s new signing: “David Ospina is an excellent goalkeeper, with good experience and a proven record of performing with Nice and Colombia. He will add strength to our squad and we are very pleased that he will be joining us.”

On Saturday night, Nice coach Claude Puel confirmed the deal and assured Arsenal fans they could expect some “quality” from the new arrival.

He told Sky Sports News: “It’s a good affair for Arsenal because he’s a very good player. You will see next season the quality of this player.

“It’s fantastic for him. It’s important for him to try another league, another club and Arsenal is a fantastic club for him. You saw in the World Cup how important a goalkeeper he is.”

It is expected Ospina will make his first Arsenal appearance at the Emirates Cup, which takes place at Emirates Stadium on Saturday, August 2 and Sunday, August 3. The 25-year-old joins the north London side on a reported four-year deal. It was believed that the 25-year-old was initially pinpointed as a ready-made replacement for back-up keeper Lukasz Fabianski, who recently joined Swansea, with Wojciech Szczesny the current No. 1 at the club.

However, Wenger has insisted that performances will dictate who holds the No. 1 position this season at the club, as Ospina looks to stake a claim for a first-team spot.

“You know at the start Szczensy will be the No. 1, then again it will be down to performances and, if Ospina shows that he is better, he will play,” he told ESPN.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of his side’s pre-season friendly with New York Red Bulls, Wenger agreed that Arsenal were looking to repeat the success they have enjoyed in the past.

“That’s what our target is but still I think we have been very consistent,” he said.

“It was a very different period initially because we built a new stadium and had to pay it back. We survived at the top level but we want more. We are now on an even ground with the other clubs than we were five or six years ago.”

Wenger also took the opportunity to explain his rational behind the signing of Ospina.

He said: “I’ve known him for a long time because he played for Nice and he went there a few years ago and slowly became a very important player for them. Hugo Lloris played for Nice before he moved to Lyon and after he moved they played Ospina. He had a big impact straight away and Lloris was not an easy player to replace.

“I felt that he did very well at the World Cup.”

Ospina will arrive at Arsenal next week and Szczesny should surely be concerned about his number one spot. While the goal that Arsenal conceded against the Red Bulls came from sloppy marking at a corner, helped in no part by the fact that Arsenal were playing a teenager in Isaac Hayden and Nacho Monreal as centre backs, Szczesny was indecisive in coming for the ball.— Mailonline.