Palace near to Fonte deal

Peter Taylor is confident Crystal Palace are on the verge of signing Jose Fonte.

The centre-half is due to join the Championship club on a season-long loan, with the option of a permanent deal next summer.

Fonte, whose brother Rui is part of Arsenal's youth setup, has arrived in England to finalise his move to Selhurst Park.

And Palace boss Taylor is confident the 22-year-old is capable of making a major impact in his team in the coming season.

"After some really positive news I'm very hopeful that we've now tied up the Fonte deal," Taylor told the Croydon Advertiser.

"We're confident everything's been agreed and he'll be flying over for a chat and a medical.

"I'm very excited about this young boy because I think he's a good centre-half and a good footballer, so I'm looking forward to working with him.

"We've hopefully got him for 12 months, with a small loan fee payable to Benfica. Then there'll be a bigger fee to pay after a year, if he likes us and we like him, so we've got the option of making it permanent.

"It's been hard work at times and there were lots of other clubs interested in the boy.

"But because his brother plays for Arsenal he was keen to come to London, so we were fortunate in that respect."