Al-Ittihad are reportedly set to announce the signing of Real Betis defender Luiz Felipe on deadline day of the Saudi transfer window.
The Jeddah giants were recently dealt a blow after their long-term target Sergio Ramos turned down an offer to rejoin his boyhood club Sevilla.
Former Barcelona man Jean-Clair Todibo, Real Madrid’s David Alaba, and Marquinhos of Paris Saint-Germain had also emerged as targets for Al-Ittihad and were heavily linked with the club.
While their pursuit of a defender has been ongoing for a while, it now seems that Al-Ittihad have found their centre-back in former Chelsea target Luiz Felipe.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Al-Ittihad have agreed personal terms with the player as Real Betis are set to accept a bid in the region of £21 million.
Felipe is said to have completed a medical before signing a reported three-year contract with the Saudi champions on Thursday.
The 26-year-old is now set to become Al-Ittihad’s fifth major summer acquisition after the signings of Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante, Fabinho, and Jota from Celtic.
His reported arrival comes after the club announced the departure of defensive midfielder Tarek Hamed to rivals Damac in order to free up space in the non-homegrown players’ quota.
The Saudi Pro League regulations state that each club is allowed to have no more than eight foreign players in their squad.
Local newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat also confirmed that Brazilian winger Romarinho could leave Al-Ittihad suggesting that another transfer could take place on deadline day.
Despite a near-perfect start to the season, Al-Ittihad suffered their first defeat of the campaign against arch-rivals Al-Hilal, losing 4-3 in the Saudi El Clasico last week.