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Long thought to be Turkey bound, Samir Nasri eventually opted to go to Sevilla, convinced by their sporting director Monchi.

The French winger seemed delighted to sign for the Spanish club, and even made it clear he was joining a far bigger club than Besiktas when presented to the press on Thursday.

Nasri was slowly pushed aside by Pep Guardiola, despite the player’s claims the Spanish manager wanted to keep him right until the very last day of the window, and the prospect of playing in the Champions League regularly with Sevilla was too much to refuse.

From Sevilla’s side, the opportunity to bring a player like Nasri to their club was an opportunity not to be missed, at least according to Monchi who spoke to Sevilla’s media, relayed by Estadio Deportivo.

He said: “When Nasri’s name appeared and we considered it, I told myself ‘What can Sevilla offer to a player who plays at City’. I wanted to offer him what I thought was our potential as a team, but I put myself in the mind of the player and though ‘Why would he come?’.

“The conversations I had with him made me happy. He’s come to play football. He could have chosen sixty other teams, but he chose Sevilla. This shows how our club is growing and this club is something every player wants.”

Sixty-one clubs wanting him? That’s a busy phone over the summer.