Harry Redknapp, the Portsmouth manager, is close to completing the loan signing of former Liverpool and Aston Villa striker Milan Baros on loan from French champions Lyons.

The Czech Republic international, who has struggled to hold down a regular place with the French side, is unlikely to be cleared in time for Saturday’s fourth round FA Cup tie at home to Plymouth Argyle, but should be available for next Wednesday’s trip to Manchester United, the Premier League leaders.

Redknapp, who last week bought Lassana Diarra, the France midfielder, from Arsenal for £5 million, financing the move by selling the versatile Matt Taylor to Bolton Wanderers, is ready to dip into the French market again having loaned left-back Lucien Aubey from Lens.

The loan signing of Baros could become a permanent move at the end of the season.

“He will make a terrific loan because he knows the English game and it would be nice to have him available this weekend, although there is international clearance and other details to be cleared up yet,” Redknapp said.

“But Peter Storrie [the Portsmouth chief executive] has gone to meet Baros’s agent to do a deal and it’s a great opportunity to add more quality to our squad.

“We are still short of numbers with our players away at the African Nations Cup and one of them, Kanu, getting injured out there. We don’t know yet how bad that injury is but it seems to be his knee.

“I feel we still need somebody like Baros, who I believe was a Golden Boot winner at the last European Championships for the Czech Republic and I’m very hopeful we will get him. Lyons are a good side and they are overloaded with top strikers. The Brazilian Fred can’t get in their team either.”

Baros has scored six goals in 22 games for Lyons, under the management of Alain Perrin, the former Portsmouth manager, who swapped him for Aston Villa striker John Carew last summer.

The move, if completed, will be welcomed by the squad at Fratton Park, the club having been criticised for a lack of activity in the January transfer window by several of their players, most recently centre backs Sol Campbell and Sylvain Distin.