Liverpool defender Sebastian Coates is on the verge of completing Sunderland move

Liverpool have reportedly agreed a £4m deal with Sunderland for the permanent transfer of defender Sebastian Coates.

According to the Liverpool Echo, the Uruguayan defender will complete his move to the Stadium of Light next week, the club where he spent the entire 2014/15 campaign on loan.

Coates did not have the best time on-loan last season, as he was hampered by injuries. But he played an important role for the team in the latter half of the season, where his performances helped Dick Advocaat's side avoid the drop.

This has impressed the new Sunderland manager, who has decided to make the defender a permanent signing. Coates was with Uruguay at the Copa America in Chile, but their campaign came to an end after hosts knocked them out in the quarter-finals of the tournament.

The 24-year-old defender joined the Merseyside club in 2011 from Club Nacional, but failed to make an impact at the club. He made just 24 appearances for the Reds during his time at the club. The Uruguayan will now be offloaded as fellow central defenders Martin Skrtel, Dejan Lovren, Mamadou Sakho and Kolo Toure are ahead of him in the pecking order at Anfield.

The report claims that Coates' exit will be the first of many from the Merseyside this summer. Fabio Borini, Mario Balotelli and Rickie Lambert are all said to be on the list of potential departures after the trio failed to meet expectations last campaign.

The Uruguayan international will become Liverpool's sixth summer departure after Steven Gerrard, Glen Johnson, Brad Jones and Iago Aspas were allowed to leave on a permanent basis, while Danny Ward has left the club on a season-long loan to Scottish club Aberdeen.