Despite Espanyol president admitting that the La Liga club were in negotiations with Napoli sporting director Riccardo Bigon for defensive midfielder David Lopez it would appear that the more likely arrival in Naples to fulfil that role is Lucas Leiva of Liverpool.
With the Brazilian left out of the squad to face Premier League champions Manchester City at the Etihad on Monday night speculation increased that his time is up at Anfield and it would seem he is set to join former coach Rafael Benitez in Italy.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport, the Partenopei have agreed an initial €1.8m deal to take the 27-year-old to the San Paolo on a season-long loan with the option to purchase for €10m at the end of the campaign.
It was Benitez that had signed the Gremio starlet back in 2007 who, after a difficult start to his career on Merseyside, eventually became a fundamental part of the side making 244 appearances in all competitions scoring six times.
Follow Kevin Pogorzelski on Twitter: @rabbitrabbiton
