AMID claims that Sunderland have made a club record £14m offer for Peter Crouch, the Black Cats are close to agreeing a deal at the other end of the scale for Paraguayan defender Paulo Da Silva.

Steve Bruce, who had a reputation for attracting talented South Americans to England during his time at Wigan and Birmingham, is close to sealing the free transfer of the centre-back and he could arrive this week.

Bruce is due at his new his office on Wearside ahead of the start of pre-season training on Wednesday and Da Silva is likely to become one of the new faces on board.

The 29-year-old has become a free agent after his contract with Mexican team Deportivo Toluca expired and the player himself has already said his farewells to his former employers.

Toluca had wanted to keep Da Silva but they were unable to match the offer of an “English team” and that has paved the way for him to head for Wearside.

“It is certainly an important step in my football career,” said Da Silva.

“The main reason for my departure was improvement rather than economic reasons.

Leaving for English football is an excellent choice.

“It will be a challenge to play in England.

“It is a very competitive league and one of the best in the world, so it is very important.

“I have to adapt as soon as possible and it will cost me at first, but my desire is to succeed and I hope I can do better than I did in Toluca.”

Sunderland have not commented on the claims in the South American media, although the same reports also suggest that Da Silva will travel to England this week to finalise the deal.

It is likely to be just the first of a number of new recruits Bruce is looking to make in the next few weeks, with two new strikers, a midfielder and a centre-back his priority.

And while Lee Cattermole and Richard Dunne are in his sights, Bruce is also thought to have upped his interest in Crouch.

The Portsmouth striker looks destined to leave Portsmouth before the start of the season and Sunderland are believed to have made an offer for him - thought to be worth around £14m.

But with Fulham and Tottenham also interested, Sunderland know they will need to act fast if they are to pull off a deal for the England international.

If successful it remains to be seen what such a transfer would mean for Kenwyne Jones, who could still be used in part of a deal to take Darren Bent to the North- East from Tottenham.

Bruce was also linked with a £4m move for Valerenga striker Moa Abdellaoue yesterday.