Tottenham Hotspur have agreed a deal to sign Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace in a £60million deal.
A contract is already said to be agreed between the two clubs, with a medical expected within the week.
Spurs are reported to be paying the Eagles £30million up front, with the rest in instalments.
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The clubs have been in contact over a fee since last week, when Eze informed Palace of his decision to leave the club.
Tottenham have agreed a deal with Crystal Palace for the transfer of Eberechi Eze
| REUTERSDespite reported interest from Arsenal towards the start of the window, Spurs raced to the front of the queue and have now secured an agreement for his signature.
Thomas Frank’s side have always been keen on Eze, but the desire became a necessity after creative midfielder and vice-captain James Maddison suffered an ACL tear during pre-season.
The injury will see the 28-year-old miss the majority of the season, meaning Spurs will be called into action to replace him.
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James Maddison left the field on a stretcher with his head in his hands a during pre-season friendly against Newcastle
|GETTY
Despite the talk around his future, Palace boss Oliver Glasner made the decision to start Eze for their opening league game of the season at Chelsea over the weekend.
Daniel Sturridge, who made 218 Premier League appearances, said on Sky Sports: “They’ll [Eze and Guehi] be excited to play [against Chelsea], they’re players for Crystal Palace at the moment, so they’re focused on the task in hand.
“I know [Marc] Guehi’s situation is slightly different to Eze’s in terms of the contract, but I know they’ll want to go out there and get the job done.”
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The midfielder was at the centre of the action, too, hammering the ball past Robert Sanchez in the Chelsea net in what seemed a fairytale goodbye goal, but it was controversially disallowed by VAR.
The game finished as a 0-0 stalemate, with the England international appearing to wave goodbye to the adorning fans before heading down the tunnel.
While discussing the potential transfer on Sky Sports, former Manchester City defender Micah Richards said Eze is a “top player” and he can “understand why top clubs want him”.
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| GETTYEze’s teammate and captain Guehi’s future remains uncertain, with Liverpool in talks to sign the 25-year-old this summer before his contract expires in a year's time.
The news marks another disappointment for the Eagles this summer. The noise around the club has been the dispute with Uefa over their Europa League qualification following their FA Cup triumph over Manchester City.
The club were demoted to the Conference League after being adjudged to have broken multi-club ownership rules.
Now, the tail-end of their summer will be dominated by the departure and replacement of talisman Eze, while rumours surrounding skipper Guehi persist.
Since his £17million move to south London, Eze has made 169 appearances and cemented his reputation as one of the most exciting and creative midfielders in the Premier League.