Aston Villa have completed the signing of Lovre Kalinic from Gent, according to reliable Telegraph journalist, John Percy.

Percy reported the news on his personal Twitter account that Kalinic to Villa is ‘done deal’, and that Dean Smith has secured his first signing at his new club.

Lovre Kalinić to #avfc is now a done deal. Fee of €6m agreed with Gent for the Croatia international goalkeeper. First major signing for Dean Smith

— John Percy (@JPercyTelegraph) December 20, 2018

Percy reported that a fee in the region of €6m (£5.43m) has been agreed with the Belgian club to sign the Croatian international goalkeeper.

Belgian media outlet Het Niewsblad reported yesterday that Aston Villa were close to signing Kalinic. The player was spotted Birmingham Airport as he was heading for his medical.

The Villans signed two goalkeepers in the summer transfer window – Andre Moreira and Orjan Nyland – but Dean Smith has further bolstered that area.

Moreira has barely featured while Nyland has been highly inconsistent. The 28-year-old has 14 caps to his name for his country. He will be a major upgrade on Nyland, and surely it represents a fantastic piece of business from Villa.