Sevilla seals move of Negredo to City

Sevilla has agreed to sell Spain striker Alvaro Negredo to Manchester City, the La Liga club said on Wednesday.

"It's now official," Sevilla said on its website. "Alvaro Negredo is a new Manchester City player pending medical checks."

Spanish media reported City would pay about 28 million euros ($37 million) for the 27-year-old, who will rejoin compatriot Jesus Navas, the Spain winger who sealed his move from Sevilla to City last month.

David Silva, another Spain international, joined City from Valencia in 2010 while its new Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini was in charge at Malaga until the end of last season.

"I have been very happy here for four years but I think my time had drawn to an end," a tearful Negredo said at a farewell ceremony at Sevilla's Sanchez Pizjuan stadium.

"I had the good fortune to receive an offer from a great club like City and I am pleased to be going to such an important team."

Known as the "Beast of Vallecas" after the Madrid neighborhood where he was born, Negredo came through the youth ranks at local club Rayo Vallecano and then Real Madrid, where he played a handful of games for the first team.

The powerfully-built forward was sold to newly-promoted Almeria in 2007, where he played for two seasons before Real bought him back and then sold him on to Sevilla in 2009.

Strong in the air and armed with a thunderous left-foot shot, Negredo was the highest-scoring Spanish player in La Liga last season with 25 goals. He netted six in six appearances in the King's Cup.

He has won 14 caps, scoring six goals, and was a part of Spain's victorious Euro 2012 squad.

Including Negredo, Sevilla has now sold five players to England in this transfer window: Navas, Luis Alberto to Liverpool, Antonio Luna to Aston Villa and Jose Campana to Crystal Palace.

The sale of Negredo is the second-most lucrative deal in the club's history after Daniel Alves's 35.5 million euro move to Barcelona in 2008.

(China Daily 07/19/2013 page22)