Stoke City have a key meeting pencilled in for Wednesday as they look to push forward the signing of Zenit St-Petersburg midfielder Axel Witsel.
The Belgium international has long been linked with a move to England's Premier League – and Stoke are keen to make sure this is the summer in which Witsel arrives in one of the world's best leagues.
The Potters will hold a meeting on Wednesday, according to Italian outlet Calcio Mercato, and are prepared to pay Zenit €15m for Witsel, while the player himself will receive an offer of a yearly salary of €3.5m.
However, Stoke do have competition for Witsel and it comes from Italy in the shape of Roma.
Witsel would be happy to move to the Italian capital, finding Roma as a destination appealing, however the Giallorossi have yet to launch a formal bid to sign him.
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The 27-year-old joined Zenit from Portuguese giants Benfica in 2012, with the Russian outfit splurging €40m, the value of his release clause at the Estadio da Luz, to snap him up.
Witsel is an established Belgium international and has 64 caps to his name.
