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The extremely complex transfer deal that would see Napoli acquire Allan from Udinese has been going in fits and starts over the last week, but now it finally sounds as though it's nearing completion, with a strong chance that it could be done early next week.
The bizarre three team transfer-slash-player-swap-slash-loan deal has been slow to develop just because of the complicated nature of it, but now it seems that the finishing line is in sight. Final negotiations are expected to take place early next week, and even Udinese's sporting director admitted that it would likely be finished next week.
The deal would see Napoli pay somewhere between €10-12 million to Udinese -- the amount reported varies, likely because of conflicting bonus information -- plus sending Miguel Britos to Udinese, from where he would immediately be loaned to Premier League side and Udinese partner club Watford FC. Udinese will also take Duvan Zapata on a two-year loan, though Napoli hold an option to allow them to break that loan after one season.
Gokhan Inler had been involved in the deal in the same capacity as Britos, but pulled out when interest from bigger clubs than Watford came calling. That set the timeline of the deal back a bit, but now things to be back on track and read to get finalized. There's been some talk that Britos isn't thrilled with the idea of joining Watford either, but given the positive-sounding reports on how close the deal is, he must have been mollified in some way.
It's a good deal for Napoli, taking a spare part and a player who needed a loan in a bad way and using them to work down the transfer fee of a player that they really need. Allan can play a big part in their midfield over the next few years, and he helps balance out the talents of his fellow midfielders well.
Hopefully there's no further hitches that slow this deal up. Napoli need to finish it soon so they can move on with the rest of their summer transfer plans, because Allan's an important anchor to them.