Brazilian Midfielder’s Agent In England as Spurs Prepare £14.5m Bid – Report

Tottenham Hotspur are hopeful that they will be able to tie up a deal for Brazil international Paulinho after the midfielder admitted that his agent had arrived in England.

The 24 year old scored for Brazil in their 3-0 win over Japan in the Confederations Cup and is believed to be high on the wanted list of Spurs boss Andre Villas-Boas, who is desperate to strengthen his squad over the summer.

Paulinho has spent the last three years at Corinthians but it seems he is destined to make the move to Europe after a string of impressive performances in the Copa Libatadores and for the Brazilian national team.

The midfielder also confirmed after the game against Japan that his agent had travelled to England, but he made it clear that he is still unsure as to where his future lies.

"It's true my agent is in England at the moment, but I don't know anything else," said Paulinho, as quoted in the Daily Mirror.

A report in the Telegraph claims that Tottenham are confident that they will be able to agree a deal worth around £14.5m but it is unlikely to be concluded until the Confederations Cup comes to an end on June 30.

It is believed that Tottenham's new director of football Frano Baldini has helped with negotiations for the midfielder who was already known to Spurs boss Villas-Boas.

Paulinho has now played 14 times for Brazil and is expected to be a key figure at next year's World Cup.

Should a deal be concluded for the box-to-box midfielder then it may raise question marks over the future of Scott Parker and Tom Huddlestone. Both players struggled to hold down a regular place in the first team last season and may well be sacrificed in order to make room for Paulinho.

The Corinthians midfielder would likely demand an immediate place in the starting XI and would likely line up alongside his international colleague Sandro.

Paulinho may not be the only Brazilian on Tottenham's radar as it is believed they are also interested in 18 year old defender Doria and attacking midfielder Bernard.