Brighton ‘reach full agreement’ to sign Tottenham-linked starlet from European giants in ‘shock’ deal | OneFootball

Brighton are set to sign Ansu Fati.

According to reports, Brighton and Hove Albion have ‘reached a full agreement’ with La Liga giants FC Barcelona for Spain international Ansu Fati.

The 20-year-old is one of Barcelona’s best young players but he was in and out of the team last season as he only made 12 starts in Ligue 1.

It has consistently been reported this summer that Fati would prefer to stay with Barcelona but his stance has changed after he did not start any of their opening three games of the 2023/24 campaign.

Tottenham have been heavily linked with Fati in recent days but Brighton have swooped to emerge as the favourites to sign the talented attacker on loan from Barcelona.

The Athletic’s David Ornstein revealed on Thursday morning that Brighton have ‘reached a full agreement to sign Fati from Barcelona’.

His report adds: ‘The 20-year-old forward is set to join Brighton on a season-long loan with no option to buy.

‘Personal terms are in place for Fati, who is expected to travel to England and do a medical on Thursday before completing the move. ‘Brighton will cover almost the entirety of the salary.’

Transfer guru Fabrizio Romano revealed earlier in the day that Brighton head coach Robert De Zerbi “made the difference to convince the player”.

“The shock of the night is about Ansu Fati, who is set to join Brighton on loan,” Romano told Caught Offside.

“Other clubs have also been keen, and yesterday Tottenham were in contact with Barcelona, but it was never a done deal, just a round of negotiations to understand the conditions of the deal, but there was no concrete plan, nothing confirmed, no deal in place.

“And then the surprise twist – Ansu Fati’s move to Brighton is almost done. We’re just waiting for documents to be signed, but verbally everything is agreed.

“The player and his camp will travel to Brighton today to sign the contract, and he still needs to have medical tests, but it’s ‘here we go’. It’s a loan deal for one year with no buy option.

“Roberto De Zerbi was crucial on this deal, he spoke with Ansu Fati and made the difference to convince the player.

“He initially wanted to stay at Barcelona, but when he understood that Barca wanted to try something different in that position (keep an eye on Joao Felix until the end of the window) he ended up reaching an agreement with Brighton, and now the deal is ready.”