The Lille midfielder Idrissa Gueye has flown to Birmingham with a view to tying up a £9m move to Aston Villa.

The 25-year-old Senegalese player is to undergo a medical after the two clubs agreed a fee on Wednesday.

If the deal is completed, Gueye will become the manager Tim Sherwood’s third summer signing following the arrival of Micah Richards and Scott Sinclair from Manchester City, and Villa’s biggest outlay on a player since 2011, when they signed Charles N’Zogbia from Wigan Athletic for £9.5m six months after buying Darren Bent from Sunderland for an initial £18m.

Gueye has made more than 130 appearances for Lille and helped the club to eighth place in Ligue 1 last season. He said recently: “Everyone knows that England has a league that attracts me.”