Spurs agree fee for Diego

Tottenham are believed to have agreed a £7.6million fee with Santos for their midfield star Diego.

But even though their increased offer appears to have been accepted, there are still a number of complications.

Diego is not owned entirely by the Brazilian club. His father, who also acts as his agent, was entitled to a 40 per cent share of any fee but Standard Sport understand that he has now reduced this to 30 per cent.

Spurs would not confirm or deny a bid had been agreed, but a spokesman said: "There are a number of issues which complicate this deal. The players' interests are held jointly between his club Santos and his father.

"He would need to obtain an Italian passport and we would want the player to join us as soon as possible whereas Santos do not want to release him until January.

"Additionally, we have not even begun to talk personal terms with the player, so there is still a long way to go."

Diego is hoping his Italian family heritage will entitle him to an Italian passport, giving him EU citizenship and avoiding any work permit problems.

But there has been a recent crackdown on immigration issues and the granting of a passport could take up to a year.