Middlesbrough are set to beat Leeds United to the signing of the Norwich midfielder Jonny Howson, according to HITC.
The sports website claim that Boro manager Garry Monk is in line to edge out his former club and win the race with United and Premier League outfit Burnley for the Elland Road academy product.
HITC report that the north-east club have tabled a second bid for Howson, 29, after Norwich rejected their opening offer.
It is said that a deal is edging closer and there is a growing sense that the player who spent six years in the senior Leeds ranks before quitting for Norwich in 2012 will link up with Monk at the Riverside Stadium by the end of the week.
Monk, who quit as Leeds manager at the end of May before being appointed by Boro two weeks later, has made Howson one of his top transfer targets as he reshapes the squad following the club’s return to the Championship.
Howson is a player who has two years remaining on his Norwich deal and has a proven track record in the second tier of English football.
Howson emerged from the Leeds ranks to make 219 appearances as well as captain the side before he quit in 2012 for Norwich, where he has been an influential player at the Championship club, scoring 23 goals from midfield in 188 games.
His 2016-17 statistics at Carrow Road are also impressive, with 38 league matches yielding six goals and providing eight assists.