Manchester City have agreed a player-plus-cash deal with Aston Villa for James Milner.
Milner, 24, will undergo a medical at Eastlands on Tuesday and City midfielder Stephen Ireland will move in the opposite direction to Villa Park.
City manager Roberto Mancini hopes to complete the deal by Wednesday at the latest.
“I hope we can close it between today and tomorrow,” Mancini said. “I think that Milner is a good player, an English player which is important. I think that Milner can play in different positions.”
City have been pursuing the England international all summer and had an initial bid rejected before the start of the World Cup.
Milner played his final game for Villa in their opening Premier League fixture on Saturday, starring and scoring in a 3-0 home win over West Ham.