Atletico Madrid are close to signing Moussa Dembele from Lyon, Diego Simeone has confirmed.
The striker is expected to move to the Wanda Metropolitano on a loan deal with an option to buy, having told Lyon he wanted a new challenge.
The agreement has not yet been finalised but Simeone seems confident the move will be completed sooner rather than later.
"It's still not confirmed, but it's very advanced," the Atletico coach told reporters ahead of Tuesday's match with Sevilla.
"I'm going to turn my head towards the game, which is what interests me, and when there's something [on Dembele], if there is something, I'll give an opinion."
Atleti will reportedly be able to secure Dembele for a €35million fee should he impress on loan before the end of the season.
The former France Under-21 international has scored just once in 16 Ligue 1 games this season, having hit 24 in 46 across all competitions in 2019-20.
Simeone's more pressing concern is Tuesday's match with Julen Lopetegui's side, which comes after Atleti's previous game with Athletic Bilbao was called off.
The match, which was due to take place in Madrid on Saturday, was postponed after Storm Filomena brought significant snowfall to the Spanish capital.
Training was severely disrupted over the weekend and Atleti will hold an extra session before facing Sevilla to make sure they are fully prepared.
"With the difficulties we've had, everyone has been at home," Simeone said. "We had no option of getting together or leaving the house. We worked at home on Saturday; on Sunday, a group was able to train together.
"There are no excuses. They're circumstances to which we have to adapt. The most important thing will be tomorrow and what happened before will not matter in terms of the criticism and opinions we receive.
"There'll be two training sessions because tomorrow we'll have another one at midday to finish fine-tuning what we have to do, making the most of the fact the game is in the evening.
"[The pitch] is very good. It looks really good, with a normal condition to be able to compete and I'm sure there won't be any difficulty with the surface."
Simeone also confirmed Kieran Trippier "is really good, he's really excited to play, focused as ever" after being cleared to play.
The full-back was hit with a 10-game ban by the Football Association due to breaches of betting regulations, but he is allowed to feature again in LaLiga after FIFA put his punishment on hold amid an appeal from Atletico.
Rumour Has It: Real Madrid plot sensational swoop for Chelsea's Reece James
Chelsea have underwhelmed this season and may look to offload players to ensure they meet financial fair play requirements, but could Reece James really leave Stamford Bridge?
The Blues have spent big money over the past 10 months since Todd Boehly took over ownership from Roman Abramovich.
Enzo Fernandez, Wesley Fofana, Mykhailo Mudryk, Marc Cucurella, Raheem Sterling, Benoit Badiashile, Kalidou Koulibaly, Noni Madueke and Malo Gusto were all signed in lucrative moves.
TOP STORY – MADRID CONSIDER SHOCK MOVE FOR CHELSEA'S JAMES
Real Madrid are plotting a shock swoop to sign Chelsea full-back Reece James as the Blues plan a clean-out, claims AS.
James, 23, is contracted with the Blues until 2028, making any deal complicated, but Los Blancos are reportedly hoping Chelsea's need to balance the books can work in their favour.
Madrid previously landed Thibaut Courtois and Eden Hazard from Chelsea, albeit in different circumstances with both only having shorter terms remaining on their contracts.
AS claims Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham remains Real's priority signing.
ROUND-UP
– The Evening Standard claims Arsenal are making West Ham midfielder Declan Rice a transfer priority, amid plenty of interest from Premier League clubs. Rice is expected to leave the Hammers at the end of this season, with Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United also reportedly in the hunt.
– Manchester United are keeping an eye on Eintracht Frankfurt's Randal Kolo Muani and Atalanta's Rasmus Hojlund should their advances for Tottenham's Harry Kane fail, claims the Manchester Evening News.
– Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat is eager for a move to Barcelona, claims Footmercato. The Blaugrana had interest in the Moroccan during the last transfer window.
– Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain have lodged initial bids for 16-year-old Hajduk Split defender Luka Vuskovic, according to 90min.
– Footmercato reports Khvicha Kvaratskhelia is set to sign a new five-year contract with Napoli, having been linked with PSG recently.
– El Chiringuito claims Manchester City are eyeing a move for ex-Spain boss Luis Enrique amid talk Pep Guardiola could opt for a sabbatical at the end of the season.
Maanum stunner inspires Arsenal turnaround against Bayern, Barca ease past Roma into semi-finals
Arsenal defeated Bayern Munich 2-0 at Emirates Stadium to complete a 2-1 turnaround on aggregate and reach the semi-finals of the Women's Champions League.
Trailing to a Lea Schuller header from last week's first leg, Frida Maanum fired in a sensational 20-yard effort to level up the tie within 20 minutes of Wednesday's return game.
Stina Blackstenius powered in a header six minutes later to give Arsenal the lead in the tie for the first time in front of the 21,307 watching spectators in north London.
Jonas Eidevall's side missed chances to kill off the tie, but they saw out the victory to set up a meeting with the winners of Thursday's tie between Paris Saint-Germain and Wolfsburg.
Barcelona earlier booked their spot in the semi-finals, where either Chelsea or Lyon await, with a commanding 5-1 win over Roma at Camp Nou sealing a 6-1 aggregate victory.
Two-goal Fridolina Rolfo scored either side of Maria Leon's curler to put Barca, who finished runners-up to Lyon last season, out of sight before half-time.
Asisat Oshoala tapped in a fourth a minute after the restart and Patricia Guijarro headed in from a corner to complete the rout.
Competition debutants Roma registered a couple of attempts on target in the remaining 40 minutes, but it was plain sailing for Barca in their quest for a second European crown.
Arsenal and Aston Villa technical staff charged by FA after altercation
Members of Arsenal and Aston Villa's technical teams have been charged by the Football Association over an altercation during their Premier League game last month.
The Gunners staged a remarkable 4-2 comeback at Villa Park on February 18, sealed by a dramatic own goal courtesy of their former goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
It came after earlier goals from Bukayo Saka and Oleksandr Zinchenko had helped the visitors draw on level terms, while Gabriel Martinelli added a fourth deep in injury time.
Celebrations were marred between a clash between Villa’s head of performance analysis Victor Manas and Arsenal's technical analyst Miguel Molina, and now the pair have been charged by the FA.
"Aston Villa's head of performance analysis, Victor Manas, and Arsenal's technical analyst coach, Miguel Molina, have been charged following their Premier League game on Wednesday 18 February," read a statement.
"It's alleged that Miguel Molina's behaviour and/or language during the 94th minute was improper and/or abusive and/or insulting, and that his behaviour in the tunnel after the final whistle was also improper."
Manas and Molina have until Friday to provide a response to the FA.
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