Soccer:Barcelona finally appear on the verge of bringing Cesc Fabregas back to the Nou Camp, with Arsenal reluctantly ready to accept less than their own valuation. In what has become the most protracted transfer saga of recent times, the Gunners remained steadfast in their demands over a €45 million fee for the club captain.

However, with the European champions not willing to improve significantly on their initial €30 million offer and Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admitting the player was unsettled, it now appears as if the Emirates Stadium club will have to broker a cut-price deal to move on.

The package is reported to include a downpayment of €30 million, with an additional €6 million in performance-based add-ons at a later stage.

There are also suggestions Fabregas is prepared to wave the €4.5 million compensation he would be entitled to for the remainder of his long-term Arsenal contract, as technically the player never asked for a transfer.

Fabregas had, officially at least, been struggling for match fitness because of a hamstring injury which saw him miss the club's Asian tour and other pre-season games, while Wenger omitted his captain from the Emirates Cup.

Were Fabregas, 24, to feature in next week's first leg of Arsenal's Champions League play-off against Udinese, the midfielder would be ineligible for any other side later in the competition.