Al Wahda sign Uruguayan midfielder Nicolas Milesi on season-long loan

Milesi, 26, joins the Abu Dhabi club from Western Region club Al Dhafra

Sebastian Tagliabue, the Argentine striker, has been at Al Wahda since 2013. Pawan Singh / The National

Al Wahda have signed Uruguayan Nicolas Milesi from Arabian Gulf League rivals Al Dhafra on a one-year loan for the 2019/20 season.

The 26-year-old midfielder played for Abu Dhabi’s Western Region club after joining from Saudi Arabian giants Al Hilal on a three-year deal last season.

He replaces Moroccan Murad Batna in Maurice Steijn's squad. Dutchman Steijn was named as Henk ten Cate's replacement as Wahda manager last week.

Milesi's arrival at Al Nahyan Stadium could be closely followed by another import with the Abu Dhabi club in advanced negotiations to sign Spanish forward Carlos Lopez from Polish side Legia Warsaw. Lopez, 28, popularly known as Carlitos, is set to be unveiled after completing a medical, according to one club official.

Milesi made 21 appearances for Al Dhafra last season, scoring one goal, as the club finished 10th in the 14-team AGL. Al Wahda finished third, 13 points behind champions Sharjah.

Carlitos' expected arrival is likely to mean a shuffle in Wahda's foreign pack. With Milesi on board Wahda have taken up their allocation of three foreigners plus one Asian player - the Uruguayan joins Argentina striker Sebastian Tagliabue, Brazilian forward Leonardo and the South Korean defender Rim Chang-woo on the books - with one likely to make way should the Spaniard's transfer go through.

Al Wahda's next assignment is against Al Nassr of Saudi Arabia in the last 16 of the Asian Champions League on August 5.