ESSENDON will meet with Greater Western Sydney on Monday to get the ball moving on Dylan Shiel's desired move to Tullamarine.
The Bombers have until the NAB AFL Trade Period deadline, which is on Wednesday at 8.30pm AEDT, to secure a deal with the Giants for the contracted midfielder.
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"Jason [McCartney] and I are scheduled to meet this afternoon so hopefully we can progress chat this afternoon," Essendon list manager Adrian Dodoro said on Monday morning at the PWC Connors Sports Breakfast.
"Jason and I will have a chat and we'll discuss [what picks are involved] later."
The Bombers' first-round NAB AFL Draft selection from this year – No.9 – is almost certainly going to be involved in the trade, but their next 2018 pick isn't until No.34 given they traded out their second-round selection last year in the deal that netted Adam Saad.
They next pick at No.34 this year, which means it's likely the Shiel deal will include a future selection with No.9.
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Shiel had Carlton, St Kilda and Hawthorn as other potential Melbourne-based suitors, but the 25-year-old officially nominated the Bombers on Tuesday last week after flying in from Sydney.
Dodoro said the Bombers were in the dark about Shiel's intentions until he told them on Tuesday.
"We were a little surprised, because it had been a long process we'd be through," Dodoro said.
"[Shiel's manager] Paul [Connors] probably kept us in the dark right up until the very last day.
"We didn't know until we got the phone call. That's just a credit to him and Paul and the process, everyone got treated fairly and equally and we had no idea.
"He's chosen to come to us and now the hard part is to get the deal done."
Shiel is contracted at the Giants until the end of next season.
Meanwhile, Giants list manager Jason McCartney was left amused by a double-page spread in Sunday's Herald Sun about how Shiel made his decision.
"It was fascinating, I thought my goodness trade period must have finished," he said.
"It was really interesting to see a double-page spread on one of our contracted players - who has a year to run (on that deal) - that he's at the Essendon footy club, when a deal hasn't been done.
"We found that quite amusing to be honest.
"We've put what we think is (a) fair and reasonable (trade deal) to Adrian, and it's been out there in media circles, so hopefully we'll have further conversations (with Essendon).""
