Liverpool has agreed an £8 million deal to sign full-back Jose Enrique from Newcastle United and hope to wrap up the move by the end of the week.
Executives from both clubs are tying up details today on a move that will see Newcastle receive an initial £6m with an agreement for a further £2m to be paid in add-ons depending on performance-related targets.
Once a deal is formally struck, Enrique will be given permission to discuss personal terms with Liverpool and undergo a medical on Merseyside. The 25-year-old has indicated his desire to move to Anfield.
Reds manager Kenny Dalglish and director of football Damien Comolli hope to have Enrique in place by the end of the week as they prepare for their Premier League opener against Sunderland on August 13.
Enrique has many admirers on Merseyside and has long been pencilled in as the leading candidate to fill the club's problem left-back position. His arrival will take their summer spending over the £50m mark as he joins new recruits Jordan Henderson, Charlie Adam and Stewart Downing.
The Spaniard's contract at Newcastle expires next summer and last week he was fined two weeks' wages for Twitter rant directed towards owner Mike Ashley. His departure will add to the discontent among Newcastle fans following the announcement on Monday that midfielder Joey Barton would be allowed to leave the club on a free transfer.
With Enrique desperate to leave, Ashley decided to cash in now rather than risk losing one of the team's star performers on a free transfer next season and having another bad influence in the dressing room.
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew has been resigned to Enrique's departure all summer and failed in a deal to sign Neil Taylor from Swansea as a potential replacement.
With youngster Shane Ferguson set to be the only recognized left-back remaining at the club, Pardew has been linked with moves for Manchester City's Wayne Bridge and Aston Villa full-back Stephen Warnock.
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