SYDNEY // Australian Aaron Mooy has signed a three-year deal with Manchester City, moving from sister club Melbourne City, it was announced on Thursday.
The 25-year-old Socceroo has established himself as one of Australia’s top attacking midfielders in recent years, twice winning Melbourne City’s Player of the Year award.
During the last A-League season, he scored 11 times and contributed 21 assists – a record for the domestic league.
The Melbourne and Manchester clubs are both owned by Abu Dhabi-based City Football Group and the Australian team’s managing director Brian Marwood said it was great opportunity for Mooy.
“Aaron is an extremely talented player who possesses the attributes we hope to foster and encourage within the City Football Group,” he said. “With the unique model CFG provides, Aaron’s move to Manchester allows us to further expose him to a high standard of opportunities to ensure his professional growth.”
In return, Melbourne City have gained Luke Brattan and Anthony Caceres on loan from Manchester City.
Left-back Ake loaned out by Chelsea
LONDON // Left-back Nathan Ake has joined Bournemouth on a season-long loan from Chelsea, the Premier League clubs have announced.
Ake, 21, signed a five-year deal at Stamford Bridge last year despite making only 12 senior team appearances and spent the previous campaign on loan with Watford.
The Netherlands Under 21 international made 32 appearances for Watford last season.
“For a player of his age he already has great experience in the Premier League and we believe he will bring a lot to our squad,” Bournemouth chief executive Neill Blake said in a statement. “He is an international player with great pedigree, so we are really excited to have him join us for the upcoming season.”
Hulk passes medical, part of Chinese club
SHANGHAI // Brazilian star Hulk signed for Chinese side Shanghai SIPG on Thursday after passing a medical, the club said, as the cash-rich Chinese Super League embarks on a new round of spending.
A news conference will be held on Friday to announce “the Incredible Hulk” joining the team from Russian side Zenit St Petersburg, a SIPG spokeswoman said.
Russian media had said Zenit would be paid around €55 million (Dh224.7m) for his services. But according to posts on China’s Twitter-like Weibo, SIPG’s general manager Sui Guoyang said the figure was “not that high”.
Website transfermarkt, which tracks dealings in the sport, put the fee at €56m on Thursday.
The deal could break the Asian transfer record of €50m, paid by Jiangsu Suning for Shakhtar Donetsk’s Alex Teixeira this year in China’s world-leading transfer splurge.
President Xi Jinping has ambitions to make the Asian giant a footballing power. During the winter transfer window in January and February, Chinese teams broke the Asian transfer record four times in an acquisition spree that outstripped even the mega-rich Premier League.
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