Reading have agreed a deal to sign Sporting Lisbon captain Daniel Carrico.
The 24-year-old Portuguese has agreed an initial contract to 2015, according to Reading's website.
Carrico, a former Portugal Under 21 international, is a defender who has also operated as a defensive midfielder.
Reading are second from bottom in the English Premier League, five points from safety.
Queens Park Rangers manager Harry Redknapp has admitted he would be interested in signing Joe Cole if the Liverpool midfielder is available.
Redknapp takes his side to West London rivals Chelsea tomorrow still marooned at the foot of the Premier League after taking over at Loftus Road in November.
The January transfer window is now open and a host of big-name players have already been linked with QPR as Redknapp looks to keep Rangers in the top flight.
Although the former Tottenham Hotspur manager was not forthcoming with specific targets he was full of praise for Cole, a player who he managed as a youngster at West Ham United.
“I have got a lot of time for Joe as a player and a person,” he said. “He is a good lad to have around your football club – a good player.
“I would like to bring Joe here if we could but the deal has to be right for the club.
“We couldn’t do a deal for what his contract is at Liverpool. We would have to look at doing a deal with Liverpool if they are willing to let him go.
“I will have to speak to Brendan [Rodgers] when the time is right and see what he has to say.”
Major League Soccer side Los Angeles Galaxy have agreed to sign Italian goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini from Tottenham Hotspur on a free transfer.
Cudicini, the 39-year-old former Chelsea player, has spent nearly four years at Spurs but has appeared in just one game so far this English season, in the Capital One Cup.
"We are delighted to be able to add Carlo Cudicini to our roster," the Galaxy head coach and general manager Bruce Arena told his club's website.
"Carlo is an experienced and accomplished goalkeeper who we believe will be a great addition to our team and our defensive unit."
Cudicini, who began his career at AC Milan in 1992, joined Chelsea in 1999, initially on loan, and was part of their Premier League-winning squads of 2005 and 2006.
After signing for Spurs he suffered a motorcycle accident in 2009, fracturing his wrists and injuring his pelvis. Although he recovered fitness, the club's acquisition of Frenchman Hugo Lloris this year pushed Cudicini down to third- hoice at White Hart Lane behind Lloris and the American Brad Friedel.
Paris Saint-Germain's sporting director Leonardo has said the club have no interest in signing Inter Milan's Dutch midfielder Wesley Sneijder or Chelsea defender Ashley Cole. "We have never spoken with Ashley Cole, there has never been any contact. [PSG coach] Carlo [Ancelotti] was his coach at Chelsea, that's why that story is doing the rounds," said Leonardo. He added: "Sincerely, we have never contacted Wesley Sneijder to come to PSG - we have five players in his position already." PSG, the French league leaders, are currently in Qatar with Ligue 1 on a winter break.
* Agencies
