LONDON - Arsenal announced on Tuesday the signing of Swiss international right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner, who arrives after finishing his contract with Juventus and becomes the first signing of the Unai Emery era.
Although the agreement is still pending completion of the regulatory process, Arsenal confirmed on their website the arrival of the 34-year-old Swiss. Lichtsteiner began his sports career at Swiss club Grasshopper in 2011, and then went on to play for French club Lille and Italian club Lazio before signing for Juventus in 2011.
With the 'Bianconeri', the Swiss player participated in 250 matches and won the Serie A title seven times in a row.
In addition, Lichtsteiner, who will wear the number 12 shirt for the 'Gunners', is the player with the most appearances for the Swiss national team, with a total of 99, and will participate in the World Cup in Russia as captain of the team.
"Stephan brings great experience and leadership to our team, he is the kind of player with a lot of quality and a very positive attitude and determination. He will improve us both on and off the field," explained Emery, the coach of the London team.
On his part, Lichsteiner argued that he hopes to bring "a winning mentality" and that the project at Arsenal is similar to that of Juventus when he arrived in 2011 because the Italians had failed to qualify for the Champions League for two years.
"I hope to bring a lot of experience and that together we reach the highest level of the Champions League," he added.