Mateo Musacchio is expected to sign for Tottenham shortly

Tottenham Hotspur are closing in on a £17 million deal for Villarreal’s 23-year-old centre-back, Mateo Musacchio. Villarreal coach, Marcelino has accepted that Musacchio will be leaving El Madrigal but reassured supporters that the deal satisfied the club.

Following these comments from Marcelino, reports in England are stating that a £17 million transfer is imminent after a deal between the two clubs and the player has been agreed.

Spurs and their Argentine manager, Mauricio Pochettino are known to be keen admirers of Musacchio after his impressive form in La Liga since leaving River Plate for Villarreal in 2009 and breaking into the first team the following season. Rumours of a swoop have been circling for some time and most likely will see the departure of another of Tottenham’s current defenders.

Marcelino told reporters that the terms of any deal had been agreed and Villarreal are now faced with the difficult task of replacing their Argentine defender.

“It’s a situation with three parties: the player, the buyer and the club in the middle and, as I have said many times, if the club sell an important player it’s because the right conditions to do so have been met.”

The conditions for Villarreal’s Player of the Year last season do appear to have been met and Marcelino accepted his loss will be felt by the club. “Things will change quite a lot [for this team]. The quality and level of [Musacchio] will make it difficult to find a replacement. It won’t be easy but the solution, for better or worse, will be found soon.”

Musacchio is an excellent signing for Tottenham in a position where they have had some difficulties in recent times. For the player it is a new challenge and having just missed out on Alejandro Sabella’s squad for Brazil, the 23-year-old can now start to think about breaking into the squad ahead of the Copa América 2015.