Brighton & Hove Albion have apparently reached a full agreement to sign Lille midfielder Carlos Baleba.
The Seagulls had identified the 19-year-old as their number one target to replace Moises Caicedo following the Ecuadorian's transfer to Chelsea in a British-record deal.
Brighton were supposedly facing competition from Liverpool to bring Baleba to the Premier League, but according to Fabrizio Romano, the teenager is heading for the Amex.
Romano states that Brighton will pay up to €30m (£25.8m) for Baleba, who will leave Lille for an initial €27m (£23.2m), and the French club will also retain a sell-on clause.
Baleba is already believed to have agreed personal terms with Roberto De Zerbi's side, and he will soon undergo his medical before an official announcement.
The Cameroonian lynchpin will leave Lille having registered two assists in 23 matches for the senior Dogues team since joining from Brasseries in January 2022.
Speaking of Ligue 1 players potentially swapping France for the Premier League, Paris Saint-Germain are supposedly encouraging Hugo Ekitike to join Brentford.
The former Reims man could not break up the established order of Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe and Neymar during his debut campaign, managing just four goals in all tournaments.
Ekitike has also been restricted to just eight minutes of top-flight football so far this season, and he has been an unused substitute in each of Les Parisiens' last two matches.
Despite only signing him permanently this summer, PSG may look to cash in on Ekitike before the deadline, and Sky Sports News claims that the French giants would support the idea of a move to Brentford.
The Bees will be without the suspended Ivan Toney until January, and Ekitike is said to be open to joining Thomas Frank's side, but Fiorentina's Nicolas Gonzalez is more of a priority.
Alternatively, Ekitike could be used as a makeweight in talks with Eintracht Frankfurt for Randal Kolo Muani, while AC Milan have also shown interest in a loan move.
Over in Portugal, Sporting Lisbon are understood to have won the race to sign in-demand right-back Ivan Fresneda from Real Valladolid.
The 18-year-old has been linked with a plethora of top clubs after bursting onto the scene in La Liga, namely Arsenal, Barcelona and Borussia Dortmund.
However, Barcelona are closing in on the loan capture of Manchester City's Joao Cancelo, while Arsenal poached Jurrien Timber from Ajax and have not reignited their interest despite the Dutchman's ACL injury.
Instead, a separate update from Romano states that the teenager is bound for Sporting, who will pay an initial €9m (£7.7m) to Valladolid, which could rise to €12m (£10.3m) with add-ons.
Fresneda has already given the green light to a five-year deal with Ruben Amorim's team, and there will also be a 10% sell-on clause for Valladolid as part of the deal.
Fresneda made 22 appearances for Valladolid in the 2022-23 La Liga campaign, but he could not prevent the White and Violets' relegation to the second tier of Spanish football.
Finally, Swansea City are reportedly discussing a deal for Aston Villa's Keinan Davis as they scope out replacements for Joel Piroe.
On the back of his 20-goal season for the Swans last term, Piroe left for recently-relegated Leeds United last week in a deal that could pocket the Swans as much as £16m.
Michael Duff's side are now on the lookout for successors to the Dutchman, and according to Wales Online, Villa marksman Davis is a name under consideration.
The report claims that talks have already started over a move for Davis, whose proposed transfer to Hull City is supposedly in jeopardy due to disagreements over personal terms.
Davis is now in the final year of his contract with Aston Villa, who will not stand in his way of an exit, but Swansea are said to be one of several Championship teams eyeing a move for the 25-year-old.
Davis has just six goals under his belt from 86 games in an Aston Villa shirt, but he netted seven times in 34 matches for Watford during a loan spell last season. body check tags ::
