Inter Miami finalizing deal with Toronto FC for 2020 MLS MVP Alejandro Pozuelo

Inter Miami is expected to get a major boost for the second half of the season as the club is finalizing a deal to acquire 2020 Major League Soccer MVP Alejandro Pozuelo from Toronto FC.

Multiple league and team sources confirmed that Pozuelo, the 30-year-old Spanish attacking midfielder, will be traded to Miami for general allocation money. The two sides were finishing the paperwork on Tuesday and an announcement is pending league approval.

Pozuelo, a creative and technical playmaker, is in his fourth season with Toronto as a designated player and has four goals and five assists in 16 games this season. He has played 100 games for the Reds and scored 30 goals with 27 assists.

He is a two-time MLS All-Star and was a big reason Toronto advanced to the 2019 MLS Cup final, where the Reds lost to the Seattle Sounders. Prior to joining Toronto in 2019, he played for Genk in Belgium, Rayo Vallecano in Spain, Swansea City in Wales and Betis in Spain.

Italian soccer journalist Fabrizio Romano was the first to report the news.

Inter Miami, which moved into ninth place in the Eastern Conference standings with a 1-1 tie against FC Dallas on the road Monday, is two spots shy of the playoff line and eager to make a postseason push. Coach Phil Neville said the team would add a few pieces during the July transfer window. They signed French winger Corentin “Coco” Jean of RC Lens last week and he is expected to join the team in the next few weeks.

Pozuelo’s contract with Toronto expires at the end of this season and he was seeking an extension, according to reports from Toronto. But his status with the team was in question as the club is reportedly close to signing Italian winger Federico Bernardeschi of Juventus.

Bernardeschi was a teammate of Toronto forward Lorenzo Insigne on Italy’s Euro-winning national team. Toronto is building its team around Insigne, the former Napoli player who signed a four-year deal with the Reds and will join the team in the coming days.

Inter Miami plays on the road at Orlando City on Saturday.