Everton agree Rodriguez deal in coup for Ancelotti

Everton have agreed a deal to sign James Rodriguez from Real Madrid, with an announcement imminent.

The Colombian international will have his medical today on Merseyside and then sign a three-year contract with the Premier League club, where he will be reunited with manager Carlo Ancelotti.

The terms of the deal are understood to have been finalised yesterday with no last-minute hitches expected.

The Daily Telegraph revealed last week that Everton had held talks over a deal for Rodriguez and were hopeful of signing him. The move represents a significant coup for

Everton and is undoubtedly the deal of the transfer window so far.

Real have been demanding a fee of €25 million (£22.3 million) for the playmaker, who has just 10 months left on his contract. It is unclear whether Everton have agreed to meet this fee, but sources close to the deal have confirmed a final arrangement has been reached and it is now expected to go ahead.

Significantly for Everton, Rodriguez is understood to be willing to take a substantial pay cut to again play for Ancelotti, who has pushed for the signing.

By joining Everton, it is the third time Rodriguez has played under Ancelotti, who was his coach at Real in his first season with the club in 2014-15 – after he joined from

Monaco for £63 million – and took him on loan to Bayern Munich.

Even though Rodriguez has had limited opportunities in recent seasons, his statistics for goals and assists remain impressive and it will be fascinating to see how he adapts to the Premier League.

Ancelotti spoke to Rodriguez last week – and again on Monday – to explain his plans for the player and Everton as he begins to rebuild his team. Rodriguez is determined to revitalise his career, which has flagged since he won the Golden Boot at the 2014 World Cup, which earned him his move to Real.

Everton have rewarded Anthony Gordon, 19, with a new five-year deal following his breakthrough into the senior side.