With his £23.5 million transfer from Man City to Al-Nassr, Aymeric Laporte will play alongside Cristiano Ronaldo.

Manchester City have officially sold Aymeric Laporte to Saudi club Al-Nassr for £23.5 million.

The 29-year-old Spanish center back Laporte has agreed to a three-year deal with the Saudi Pro League club, reportedly earning £21 million annually.

After five and a half years in Manchester, he announced on Wednesday night that he was departing the Treble winners.With his move to Al-Ahli last month, Laporte joins his former City teammate Riyad Mahrez as a high-profile player to sign with a club in the Saudi Pro League. During his time in Al-Nassr, Laporte will meet up with Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane.

The signing of Laporte, who will wear jersey number 27, was announced in a video broadcast by Al-Nassr on Twitter. In it, he can be heard saying, “Laporte is here.”

In a video posted Wednesday, Laporte confirmed his departure, saying, “Dear Cityzens, today I wаnted to share a story with you.”

What has happened is now a part of our past. I appreciate everything and hope to meet you soon.Laporte, the center back, elaborated on the experience, writing, “It has lasted for five and a half unforgettable years,” in his social media post.

There are many precious recollections that I will always treasure.

After 180 games with City, Laporte was released from Etihad and made his final appearance off the bench in a Premier League opener victory against Burnley. During his tenure with the team, he brought home 15 awards.

The 29-year-old forward originally signed with City from Athletic Bilbao in January 2018 for a then-record £57 million.

I joined because I wаnted to win awards, and that’s why I did so well at initially. The success we have had as a team, though, has been beyond anything I could have dreamed,” Laporte said on the Man City website.

I’d like to express my gratitude to everyone who helped me out during my time in Manchester, from my coaches to my teammates to the amazing City supporters.

I’m a lifelong City supporter who can’t wait to catch up with old friends.He was left out of the squad that won 1-0 against Newcastle last week after being used only as a substitute in the Community Shield loss to Arsenal and the UEFA Suρer Cup victory over Sevilla.

Josko Gvardiol’s transfer from RB Leipzig has further demoted Laporte at City.

All of the teams in the Saudi Pro League, which are owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF), have signed a plethora of the world’s finest players this summer as a result of the PIF’s аggressive recruitment push.

In the past year, many high-profile players have moved from the Premier League to the Middle Eastern league, including Ronaldo, Mane, Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante, Roberto Firmino, and Jordan Henderson.

 

With 13 championships to his nаme from his time at City, including five Premier League crowns and the Champions League last season, Laporte will now do the same.