Swansea agree fee with Atletico Madrid as Borja Baston flies to Wales

Any faint hope that was left of Borja Baston becoming Atletico Madrid’s long-term solution at the striker position were ended today when Swansea and Atletico agreed a fee of €18 million for the striker.

The 23-year-old was given permission to miss this morning’s training session with Atletico and it was reported that he will fly to the United Kingdom to have his medical in the afternoon.

A product of Atleti’s youth system, he had been loaned out on a number of occasions, most notably last season, when he scored 18 goals in 36 games for Eibar and helped them to remain in La Liga - and finished 13th and clear from danger - despite the fact that they are a minuscule club in the North of Spain.

A tall, relatively quick number nine with an instinctual eye for goal, Baston was seen as a possible long-term replacement for Fernando Torres and a role player this season for Atletico but Kevin Gameiro was signed and Baston fractured his forearm in a freak training accident meaning he missed some priceless time in preseason training. Not that the injury was that significant, it just lessened an already slim hope of him latching on at Atletico and winning himself a modicum of playing time.

He will quite likely suit the Premier League down to the ground given his physicality and at a club like Swansea, while they remain somewhat of an unknown, they do like to play relatively stylish football with Glyfi Sigurdsson pulling the strings and they always have room for a big, strong number nine. Borja may have found his home.