Schalke are set to win the race for Barcelona winger Ibrahim Afellay.
Afellay has been made available by Barca this week.
Schalke's general manager Horst Heldt admitted: "We have gone quite far with this."
Schalke striker Klaas-Jan Huntelaar tweeted: "I want to welcome Afellay to Schalke 04. Training session tomorrow at four. Don't forget!"