Navas moves to Sevilla as City plan unusual camp

Jesus Navas has rejoined Sevilla after leaving Manchester City at the end of his contract, the Andalusian club said yesterday.

The Spanish right winger made his professional debut with Sevilla in 2003 and played 393 games for his hometown club before signing for Manchester City in 2013 for £14.9 million (Dh72.3m).

Navas, 31, featured 183 times for the English side, scoring eight goals to help them win a Premier League title and two League Cups.

“Characterised by his great consistency and enviable physical fitness, Jesus Navas returns home with the firm intention of becoming the player with the most appearances in official games for Sevilla,” the Spanish club said.

The record is held by Juan Arza Inigo, who played 419 matches for the club and is Sevilla’s second top-scorer of all time with 204 goals.

Navas joined Sevilla as a 15 year old and progressed to the first team, winning two Uefa Cups and two Copa del Reys.

Navas suffered from homesickness earlier in his career that forced him to skip pre-season tours and turn down international call-ups.

After counselling, Navas was able to be a part of Spain’s victorious World Cup squad in South Africa in 2010, before leaving Andalusia for Manchester three years later.

Meanwhile, City have made the unusual decision to travel to Spain for a training camp less than a day after their opening Premier League fixture, the club have announced. City manager Pep Guardiola and his squad will fly to Girona for a four-day trip just hours after visiting promoted Brighton and Hove Albion on August 12.

The training camp, which will include a fixture against Primera Liga newcomers Girona, has been arranged to give Guardiola time to work with players who missed City’s pre-season tour of the United States.

The links with Girona were also boosted by the fact that City will send three more players on loan to the newly promoted team.

Yesterday, it was announced that new £10million signing Douglas Luiz, winger Marlos Moreno and midfielder Aleix Garcia linked up with the Catalan side.

They follow full-back Pablo Maffeo, who joined Girona for a third spell on Monday. All are season-long loan deals.

Luiz’s move comes just weeks after the highly-rated 19-yearold Brazilian midfielder was signed by City from Vasco da Gama.

City director of football Txiki Begiristain told www.mancity.

com: “Girona will give Douglas the perfect opportunity to develop at the top level of the European game.”

Colombian striker Moreno, 20, was signed by City last summer but spent the 2016-17 campaign on loan at Deportivo La Coruna.

Spaniards Garcia and Maffeo, both 20, have been on the fringes of the City first team without earning regular opportunities.

City have been working closely with Girona in recent seasons and this week announced they would play in a friendly in Catalonia on August 15.

That comes just three days after City’s Premier League opener, with manager Guardiola having decided to take his squad abroad for four days’ warm-weather training.

Girona spent part of their pre-season programme at the City Football Academy in Manchester.

City will travel to Spain less than a day after their opening Premier League fixture