Rich Monaco close to purchase Falcao

PARIS - Agence France-Presse

Atletico Madrid’s Colombian superstar Radamel Falcao could be the latest in the line of high-profile players moving to wealthy Ligue 1 club Monaco. AFP photo

Atletico Madrid’s Colombian striker Radamel Falcao was in Monaco on May 28 negotiating a transfer as Real Madrid’s Portuguese defender Ricardo Carvalho completed his move to the Ligue 2 champion.

Sources said the duo were set to undergo their medicals later, but added that Barcelona goalkeeper Victor Valdes was also close to a move to the Stade Louis II.

Monaco is believed to have agreed a fee of some 60 million euros for Falcao, which would make him the most expensive player in French football history.

Falcao, 27, won the 2012 Europa League and has netted 28 goals this season for Atletico, whom he also helped to glory in the Spanish Copa del Rey.

Meanwhile, Carvalho, 35, has signed a one-year deal after his deal with Real Madrid expired. “I am delighted to join Monaco and participate in this new adventure. It is a new challenge for me,” said Carvalho, who played in the Porto team that beat Monaco 3-0 in the Champions League final in 2004.

Monaco’s reemergence as a major power in the French game has come since Russian billionaire Dimitri Rybolovlev - the world’s 100th-richest man according to Forbes magazine - bought the club in December 2011.

Since their promotion to Ligue 1, the club announced the double signings of James Rodriguez and Joao Moutinho from Porto for a combined fee of 70 million euros.

However, Vasilyev has sought to play down expectations in an interview with L’Equipe. When asked if his team could compete for the Ligue 1 title next season, he said: “No, no... PSG have a great team. There are others too like Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, Lille... It is still too early to envisage being champions.”