Eric Bailly to Manchester United: Ivorian defender flies in for medical to complete £30m transfer

Villarreal centre-back close to completing move from Spain to become Jose Mourinho's first signing at Old Trafford

Eric Bailly is likely to kick-start Jose Mourinho's rebuilding mission at Manchester United (Getty)

Manchester United are close to sealing a £30m deal for Villarreal defender Eric Bailly after flying the Ivory Coast international into the city for a medical.

The Old Trafford side are understood to have agreed to meet Villarreal’s asking price for the 22-year-old, who will become the first addition to the club’s squad since Jose Mourinho’s appointment as manager last month.

Although United are expected to complete a deal for Sweden forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Bailly’s arrival will mark the start of the Mourinho era, with the former Chelsea manager determined to begin his squad reshaping in order to have new faces available for the start of pre-season training on 4 July.

Bailly has emerged as one of the most sought-after defenders in La Liga after impressing at Villarreal since arriving at El Madrigal from Espanyol in a £4.4m deal in January 2015.

Barcelona, looking to replace Juventus-bound Javier Mascherano at the heart of their defence, have also tracked Bailly.

But United have moved swiftly to capture the player in order to answer Mourinho’s call for early reinforcements before he begins work on the training ground next month.

Should Bailly pass his medical, a deal is expected to be completed before the end of this week.