Aston Villa agree deal for Croatia international Lovre Kalinic
Aston Villa have agreed to complete the signing Croatian international goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic on a five-year contract in January.
The 28-year-old will officially join Villa from Gent on 1st January when the transfer window re-opens.
He will not be able to feature until the deal is finally completed.
Head Coach Dean Smith said: “We are delighted to be signing someone of Lovre’s experience and quality.
"He is an outstanding goalkeeper and we are looking forward to welcoming him when he joins at the beginning of January.”
Kalinic represents an improvement for a Villa team still in the thick of the Championship promotion race.
The 28-year-old has 14 caps for Croatia and was on the bench for the World Cup semi-final in Russia when England were defeated and also for Croatia’s losing final against France.
"I’m just glad it has gone through so quickly ," said Smith
"It was an area we believed we could strengthen. It will improve him.
"I’m guessing a lot of clubs will look at it and see it as a big move.
"We certainly believe we have got a Premier League player."
The Villa boss revealed he had been chasing the stopper for some time.
"It goes back months. A lot of work goes on throughout any recruitment.
"We have to improve the squad, if we bring players in.
"Permanent transfers are the ones we would like because you can work on them day in and day out and improve them for the football club in the future.
"Sometimes you have to take loans because they are a necessity because they areas you want to fill."
