Chelsea have won the race to sign Franco Matias Di Santo for
£3.4million next month, according to the Argentina forward's club
Audax Italiano.
Nine Premier League clubs - reportedly including Manchester United,
Liverpool and Arsenal - have been tracking the 18-year-old, along
with a number of other top clubs around Europe.
However Audax Italiano president Valentin Cantergiani claims the
Chilean side are on the verge of sellling Di Santo to
Chelsea.
Cantergiani said: "Almost everything is arranged. There are details
that should not be a problem to solve. We still have to agree on
the percentage Audax will receive in a second transfer, but all the
rest is defined."
The Mendoza-born player is expected in London early next month to
sign a five-year deal at Stamford Bridge.
"Chelsea have been following Franco for more than a year and
negotiations have been quick," the player's agent Gustavo Goni
commented.
"The club want to sign him in January when the transfer window
opens."
Di Santo, meanwhile, expressed his delight at the move. He said:
"My agent told me not to talk about this, but the truth is I won't
go on playing at Audax. Playing at Chelsea would be very nice. It
would be fantastic."
Di Santo has bagged 13 goals in 35 appearances since joining Audax
from Godoy Cruz de Mendoza two seasons ago and has also starred for
Argentina's youth sides.
