After what seems to have been a complex and difficult negotiation process, Arsenal have finally reached an agreement which will see Carlos Vela make his loan-move to Real Sociedad a permanent fixture. After impressing on a season-long loan in San Sebastian, Vela is now on his way back to Spain to finalize a 4-year deal with Real.

A statement on realsociedad.com (roughly translated from Spanish) reads:

“Real Sociedad has reached a tentative agreement with Arsenal Football Club for Carlos Vela plays the next four seasons at the club. The official presentation will take place on Thursday, with the time and place to be specified.

“Negotiations with Arsenal have been complex, but the will of the English club, the effort of our organisation and the willingness of both the player and his agent have become key factors for the left-footed player from Cancun again donning the blue & white shirt.”

The statement goes on to mention that Vela was the “third best scorer in the second-half of the season with ten goals, behind only Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.” I am presuming that the second-half of the season is from January until the end of the season, although don’t hold me to that.

Carlos is undoubtedly a very talented young player, his chipping abilities second only to those of one Lionel Messi, but was unfortunate to have had limited opportunities in North London. He did score a hat-trick against Sheffield United in the League Cup on his full Arsenal debut, but otherwise failed to really show why he deserved a place in the starting line-up on a regular basis. No doubt he will have better success in La Liga.

There is no mention on any new websites of how much the fee will be, but according to @younggunsblog Arsenal will receive £3 million and a 50% sell-on fee.