Real Madrid are reported to be on the verge of signing Rui Costa from Fiorentina for £15 million.
The move, which would eradicate rumours of a Zinedine Zidane switch to Madrid this summer, would see the 28 year-old Portuguese star hook up with flamboyant compatriot Luis Figo.
Despite professing to be happy at Fiorentina, Rui Costa is known to have fallen out with club president Vittorio Cecchi Gori and this season has also had a public dispute with manager Faith Terim.
Furthermore, website onefootball.com quotes the midfielder as saying ""I will regret having to leave Fiorentina where I have played for a long time ... but anyone would appreciate the appeal of playing alongside a player such as Figo."
Rui Costa is one of the most elegant midfielders of his generation but has one precious little since becoming a World Champion with Portugal’s U-21s. He was rumoured to be on his way to AC Milan earlier this month, but flatly denied this.
If Real’s president, Florentino Perez, succeeds in luring Rui Costa to Spain, it will further enrage critics such as Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, who recently accused the European Champions of "simply cheating" by paying huge sums for top players despite being massively in debt.