Swansea City close in on Stephen Eustáquio as transfer window enters final week

Swansea City are working on a move to sign Porto midfielder Stephen Eustáquio before the transfer window closes on September 1, as reported by the South Wales Echo. The club have already added six new signings this summer, but manager Vitor Matos is still keen to strengthen his squad, particularly in midfield and at centre-back.

Eustáquio, a 29-year-old Canada international, would be the seventh new arrival of the summer, following Stephen Welsh, Elijah Just, Joseph Opoku, Moussa Yeo, Tiago Parente and Ross Stewart. Reports in Portugal have suggested the Swans have agreed a package of around €4m, including performance-related bonuses and a sell-on clause. Sky Sports' Anthony Joseph reports a fee of £3.4 million, also with a sell-on clause attached. However, Swansea sources insist the deal has not yet progressed to the point of agreeing a fee, though they have confirmed the club are working on it.

Eustáquio is entering the final year of his contract with Porto, which would reduce his sale price. He originally joined Porto on loan from Pacos de Ferreira in the winter of 2022, with the Portuguese giants exercising their purchase option that summer. He has made 103 league appearances for Porto over the past four seasons, scoring 12 goals and providing 11 assists in 157 games in all competitions. He has played only two minutes in Porto's first three league matches this season, having spent the first half of the MLS season on loan with Los Angeles FC, where he made 10 appearances.

Internationally, Eustáquio has won 61 caps for Canada and featured in the last two World Cups. Earlier this summer, he captained Canada and scored the winning goal against South Africa in stoppage time in the Round of 32, a goal that sent Canada through to the last 16. It was his fourth international goal.

Centre-back search and other potential incomings

Matos is also keen to bring in a centre-back, a priority that has been underscored by an injury crisis. Cameron Burgess suffered a potential season-ending Achilles injury, and Ben Cabango limped off at the weekend, with the severity of his issue not yet known. The 0-0 draw with Sheffield United at the weekend may have added urgency to the search.

Reports that Swansea have looked at Wrexham's Conor Coady have been strongly dismissed by club insiders, while Rangers' John Souttar has been linked with a move. The club were reportedly keen on Valencia midfielder Andre Almeida, but he reportedly turned down the move and remains a Valencia player. Celta coach Claudio Giráldez said he had no news about any Almeida move.

Potential departures

The club are likely to listen to offers for Florian Bianchini, with Matos saying "it's important for him to find a place where he feels the value of his football." Meanwhile, Hull City made a rebuffed £10m offer for Zan Vipotnik earlier, with Swansea valuing the striker at around £20m. Vipotnik is happy to stay with the club as things stand.

Ousseynou Fall Seck looks set to stay in Europe, with the Toulouse and Eintracht Frankfurt both believed to be pushing hard for his signature, due to work permit issues. Zeidane Inoussa remains part of the squad, according to Matos, while Ronald has been linked with Coventry City but no concrete offers have materialized.

Matos: 'a chess game in the middle of a storm'

Matos has described the transfer market as "a chess game in the middle of a storm," reflecting the uncertainty of the final days of the window. "I saw the Porto manager said something two or three weeks ago that the market now is like a chess game," he said after the Sheffield United draw. "I will say it is a chess game in the middle of a storm. So let's see how it goes, I don't know. It's still not check-mate!"

Swansea have made four points from their first two Championship matches this season.