Villarreal striker Cedric Bakambu
by
Phumzile Ngcatshe
Thursday Jan 11, 2018. 17:30
Following his recent move to Chinese side Beijing Guoan, Democratic Republic of Congo’s Cedric Bakambu is set to become the continent’s most expensive player.
Bakambu has joined Guoan from Spanish side Villareal after the Chinese agreed to pay the €40 million release clause.
According to media reports, the club has also agreed to pay all imposed taxes on the player that would make the deal reach a total of €74 million.
Bakambu joined the Spanish La Liga side in 2015 on a five-year contract and netted a total of 46 goals for the club.
The 26-year-old has previously confessed in June that he has no intentions to leave the club after receiving offers from Newcastle United and West Ham United.
With Paris Saint Germain of France having also showed interest in him, the offer was rejected by the Yellow Submarines.
Bakambu’s transfer to China will top Mohamed Salah (£34.3m) and Sadio Mane (£34m) as the most expensive African player of all time.
The list also includes Ivorian centre back Eric Bailly to Manchester United (£30m) and Algerian hitman Islam Slimani to Leicester City in 2016 (£28m).
On the other hand, the deal will also top Guinea international Naby Keita’s pending transfer to Liverpool next summer after agreeing to a £57m move in the summer of 2018 from RB Leipzig.
It is reported that the Leopards forward has already completed his medical, but the club is awaiting formalities of the transfer for the player to be presented.
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