Pedro Rodriguez to Manchester United is nearly there, after the Barcelona forward reportedly completed part of his medical.
The Spain international has been heavily linked with a move to Old Trafford in the past few weeks, with Louis Van Gaal seeing Pedro as the ideal replacement for Angel Di Maria, who completed a move to PSG, after just one season with Manchester United.
Manchester United have agreed a fee of around €30million with Barcelona, with the 28-year-old tipped to complete his move to Old Trafford sometime this week.
Gazzetta dello Sport, who cite a report in Marca, go as far as stating that Pedro has completed one phase of his medical, and the rest will be done and dusted soon, allowing Manchester United to officially unveil their player.
Pedro is currently with the Barcelona squad in Tbilisi, preparing to play in the UEFA Super Cup against Sevilla, so, unless Manchester United representatives flew to Georgia, or before that to Spain, it is unlikely that any part of the medical is done.
Having said that, however, a move does look inevitable, even if Luis Enrique remains keen on keeping the player, who is the number one backup for Barcelona's irresistible front three of Neymar, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez.
Pedro is expected to start the UEFA Super Cup match against Sevilla, with Neymar ruled out through illness, but that could prove to be the Spaniard's last match in a Barcelona shirt.
With Van Gaal preferring a 4-2-3-1, despite promising a 4-3-3, it will be interesting to see where Pedro fits in the system, considering how well Juan Mata and Ashley Young have played, but Thierry Henry, the Arsenal legend, believes Pedro is another perfect-for-Van-Gaal player.
"Van Gaal went on to buy players this summer that can suit the way he wants to play -- that's why he wants Pedro," Henry was quoted by Marca. "Pedro knows those tactics, he can do what Van Gaal wants
"Manchester United will be getting an excellent player if they can complete the signing of Pedro," Henry added to The Sun.
"He was the perfect teammate for me at Barcelona because his understanding of wing play was second to none.
"No one was better at applying pressure from out wide. It is a position that is in his DNA. It's been drilled into him by a lifetime at the Nou Camp and why I believe he will be such an important acquisition for United."
Henry also believes Pedro will prove to be a better player under Van Gaal's system than Di Maria.
"Louis van Gaal's teams play in a structured way," the former striker added. "He wants his players to stick rigidly to their positions and maximise their area of the pitch.
"Di Maria's game was based on running free from the right or the left. He didn't fit into Van Gaal's setup and that's why they have sold him.
"Pedro will be much more disciplined. He was more than important to Barcelona's success, even though he spent much of last season as backup for Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez."
