In what promises to be the strangest deal of the summer transfer window, Valencia reportedly intend to sell striker Alvaro Negredo as soon as they have paid Manchester City £24m for his services.
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Mundo Deportivo claims the La Liga heavyweights cannot find a legal way out of the agreement they have with the Blues to shell out the hefty transfer fee for the out-of-sorts Spaniard when his loan deal at the Mestalla Stadium expires next month.
Instead, they plan to place the 29-year-old back on the transfer market as soon as he officially becomes their player, because he has failed to impress in front of goal this term.
The man they nicknamed ‘The Beast’ at the Etihad Stadium has managed a return of only five goals in 28 appearances in all competitions, leading Valencia to believe that they are best-served cutting their losses and seeking a goalscorer from elsewhere.
Negredo joined City from Sevilla in the summer of 2013 and made a flying start to life in England, plundering 26 goals before the end of January.
However, his form hit a dramatic slump, culminating in a four-month goal drought, and he was allowed to return to Spain on a one-season loan deal with a mandatory purchase.
The targetman’s woes in the final third of the pitch mean Valencia are likely to struggle to recoup much more than a fraction of the fee they are about to pay City.