(lo FP)
closing in on diego
i wonder if he'll sign or be like all the other 'big stars' tottenham have been linked with over the years (rivaldo, morientes anyone )
closing in on diego
Tottenham and Santos have agreed a fee for teenager Diego, BBC Sport understands.
The Brazilian club had initially rejected a £5.6m bid for the 18-year-old, but Spurs have now increased their offer to £7.6m.
A stumbling block in the negotiations had been that Santos own only 60% of the player's registration, with Diego's father Djair da Cunha holding the remaining value.
But Diego's father has now agreed to reduce his percentage of the deal to 30%.
The two clubs are still negotiating over when Diego will join Spurs.
The Premiership club want the player to move immediately while Santos had hoped to keep him until the end of the year so he would be available for the rest of the Campeonato Brasileiro.
Eighteen-year-old Diego, who wears the Santos number 10 shirt which once belonged to Pele, has already broken into the full Brazil squad.
The Santos playmaker, nicknamed ''Zidane Jr'' after World Player of the Year Zinedine Zidane, is in the second year of a five-year contract with the Brazilian club.
Diego was the key player in the Santos team that won last year's Brazilian Championship, and then went all the way to the final of the Copa Libertadores, South America's Champions League.
The Brazilian club had initially rejected a £5.6m bid for the 18-year-old, but Spurs have now increased their offer to £7.6m.
A stumbling block in the negotiations had been that Santos own only 60% of the player's registration, with Diego's father Djair da Cunha holding the remaining value.
But Diego's father has now agreed to reduce his percentage of the deal to 30%.
The two clubs are still negotiating over when Diego will join Spurs.
The Premiership club want the player to move immediately while Santos had hoped to keep him until the end of the year so he would be available for the rest of the Campeonato Brasileiro.
Eighteen-year-old Diego, who wears the Santos number 10 shirt which once belonged to Pele, has already broken into the full Brazil squad.
The Santos playmaker, nicknamed ''Zidane Jr'' after World Player of the Year Zinedine Zidane, is in the second year of a five-year contract with the Brazilian club.
Diego was the key player in the Santos team that won last year's Brazilian Championship, and then went all the way to the final of the Copa Libertadores, South America's Champions League.
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