A deal for 18-year-old Independiente del Valle midfielder Darwin Guagua to move to Birmingham City is reportedly close to completion. His recent match against LDU Quito was potentially his last in Ecuadorian football before a move to the English League. The interest in the player is not new; last November, Independiente del Valle's sporting director, Luis Fernando Saritama, had stated that Guagua was attracting attention, although a transfer did not occur in January. More recently, the club's general manager, Santiago Morales, confirmed in an interview with journalist Alisson Abigail that talks are in progress. Morales stated that the club prefers to wait until all documents are signed and that they will see what happens in the coming days. In an unofficial report, Doble Cinco, which shared the interview on X, stated that Birmingham would be Guagua's new club.