The Gunners confirmed the signing of the 25-year-old from Ligue 1 outfit Dijon on Monday for a €2m fee, and he has penned a long-term deal at the Emirates Stadium.
After the departure of Emiliano Martínez for Aston Villa, the Londoners were short of a goalkeeper and have thus delved into the market to snap up the Iceland international.
Arteta is pleased to sign the former KR Reykjavik man and feels that he will further add to the competition at the Emirates Stadium.
“We want to create healthy competition for places and we look forward to seeing Alex bring further depth to the goalkeeping position”, Arteta told his club’s official site.
Technical director Edu revealed that Arsenal had been monitoring the player for some time and a closer analysis revealed that Runarsson had the attributes they had been looking.
“We’re very pleased to welcome Alex to our squad”, he said.
“We have been monitoring him for some time and from the analysis, he has strong attributes that we look for in a goalkeeper and as a person.”
Runarsson came through the youth ranks at KR Reykjavik, but was quickly snapped up by Danish side FC Nordsjaelland.
He joined Dijon in 2018 and caught the eye with his performances for the French outfit.
