Arsenal have officially confirmed that Jakub Kiwior has completed a permanent move to Porto following an impressive season in Portugal.
The Polish centre-back joined Porto on loan last summer, with an agreement already in place that allowed the Portuguese club to make the transfer permanent at the end of the campaign. After a strong season that ended with Porto lifting the Primeira Liga trophy, the option has now been activated.
Porto recently announced that the 25-year-old had signed a contract running until 2030 in a deal reportedly worth an initial £14million, with performance-related bonuses potentially increasing the total fee to around £19million.
In a statement, Porto explained that they had secured both the sporting and economic rights to the defender, while Arsenal negotiated a future sell-on clause as part of the agreement. The Portuguese side also revealed that Kiwior’s new contract includes a release clause worth €70million.
Arsenal later acknowledged the move in an update on their official loan roundup, noting that Kiwior’s transfer became permanent after Porto sealed the league title. Although he did not feature in Porto’s latest defeat against AFS, the defender played a key role throughout the season.
Kiwior struggled for regular opportunities at Arsenal during the opening weeks of the Premier League campaign. Increased competition in defence following the arrivals of Piero Hincapie and Cristhian Mosquera limited his chances under Mikel Arteta, eventually leading to discussions about a move away.
Speaking to Polish outlet TVP Sport, Kiwior dismissed rumours suggesting Arsenal were eager to sell him.
He explained that the club initially resisted the idea of letting him leave and insisted he always felt respected by both the coaching staff and management.
According to the defender, Arteta was reluctant to approve the transfer at first, but eventually understood his desire for more consistent playing time. Kiwior admitted that with Gabriel Magalhaes and William Saliba firmly established in central defence, regular minutes would have been difficult to secure.
The former Arsenal defender added that after personally speaking with Arteta and outlining his ambitions, the manager accepted his decision and supported the move.
Kiwior leaves north London having made a valuable contribution during his time at the club, while Porto now secure a defender who has quickly become an important figure in their squad.
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