Chelsea have won the race to sign Franco Matias Di Santo for £3.4million next month, according to the Argentina forward's club Audax Italiano.
Nine Premier League clubs - reportedly including Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal - have been tracking the 18-year-old, along with a number of other top clubs around Europe.
However Audax Italiano president Valentin Cantergiani claims the Chilean side are on the verge of sellling Di Santo to Chelsea.
Cantergiani said: "Almost everything is arranged. There are details that should not be a problem to solve. We still have to agree on the percentage Audax will receive in a second transfer, but all the rest is defined."
The Mendoza-born player is expected in London early next month to sign a five-year deal at Stamford Bridge.
"Chelsea have been following Franco for more than a year and negotiations have been quick," the player's agent Gustavo Goni commented.
"The club want to sign him in January when the transfer window opens."
Di Santo, meanwhile, expressed his delight at the move. He said: "My agent told me not to talk about this, but the truth is I won't go on playing at Audax. Playing at Chelsea would be very nice. It would be fantastic."
Di Santo has bagged 13 goals in 35 appearances since joining Audax from Godoy Cruz de Mendoza two seasons ago and has also starred for Argentina's youth sides.
