Newcastle United confirmed on Tuesday morning that they had reached agreement with Inter Milan to purchase striker Obafemi Martins for an undisclosed fee that's being touted elsewhere as £10m.

However, SkySports have thrown the name of Portsmouth into the ring as late bidders, although there's no word from Fratton Park that they have made a bid, let alone had one accepted.

Sky go on the angle that Pompey are prepared to offer better personal terms that the Magpies and have shown their hand after no agreement was concluded between United and the agent of Martins. Watch this space.

Assuming no contractual snags or medical problems, Martins could make his debut at Villa on Sunday - the registration deadline for Thursday's UEFA game already having passed.

Obafemi Martins quotes from the BBC, Monday:

"I'm close to moving to Newcastle despite all the initial setbacks. Eighty percent of the deal with Newcastle is completed.
"Playing in the Premiership has been a long-term ambition and I am extremely delighted with the prospect of concluding that in the next couple of days."

Meanwhile Glenn Roeder said on Monday:

"I think we have found one (a striker) - we are getting closer.

"There is so much grass behind the back lines in English football you need to find someone with searing pace and I think we have done that.

"We need that striker who is prepared to run without the ball and receive it and we are close to one or two like that, who can play alongside Shola Ameobi.

"We are starting to get close to negotiations with one particular club. Fingers crossed, with two weeks to go, we need to secure players.

"Of course, Martins is the player that has been mentioned the most but there are others too."

Reports in Italy on Saturday evening had asserted that a deal between Newcastle and Inter Milan had been struck for the transfer of the striker with the player valued at around 16m Euro (£10.9m) and an official announcement expected on Monday or Tuesday.

Inter had claimed that Martins had the flu when failed to travel with the Italian side to a pre -season training camp in Spain.

Earlier that day Sunday Mirror scribe Brian McNally seemed certain that things were starting to gain momentum on the transfer front:

Newcastle United will today move dramatically closer to a £10million swoop for Inter Milan striker Obafemi Martins. Martins' agent Patrick Bastianelli will fly into Newcastle today to hold transfer talks with Magpies chairman Freddy Shepherd.

And Newcastle are hopeful that they can thrash out a deal with both Martin’s representative and the Serie A club that will allow the powerful Nigerian international to move to Tyneside and help solve manager Glenn Roeder’s striking problems that were compounded by a serious injury to England World Cup star Michael Owen and the retirement of former skipper Alan Shearer.

The lightning fast 21-year-old, who can reputedly run the 100 metres in under 11 seconds, has found the back of the net 49 times for Inter since bursting into the Serie A side three years ago (NB: this goal total doesn't tally with other sources).

Inter are asking £12million for wantaway Martins, while Newcastle will start the bidding at around £8million. But the arrival of Hernan Crespo from Chelsea could persuade the San Siro giants to accept an offer in the region of £10 million.

Newcastle have been conducting their own inquiry into claims that Martins was actually 27 or 28, but there is growing evidence that the confusion was caused by a clerical error on the Nigerian Football Association’s website and that the striker was born in October 1984.