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Sevilla have confirmed that they have agreed personal terms with Ukrainian international Yevhen Konoplyanka, subject to a medical. Dnipro has not made any official statement regarding the 25-year-old, but the player’s name has not been listed in the first team squad put up on their official website.
The two teams, who contested the 2014/15 Europa League final, are however yet to finalise the compensation fee for the winger. Konoplyanka had run out his contract at Dnipro but his former club is entitled to a transfer sum due to the nature of his contract.
“Sevilla FC have reached an agreement with the Ukrainian international Yevhen Konoplyanka, conditional to him passing the medical examination and that the final agreement with the Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk is closed,” Sevilla’s official press release read.
Konoplyanka began his professional career at Dnipro as a 16-year-old and has earned over 40 caps for his national team. His splendid form last season in helping the club reach the final of the Europa League had led to many clubs queuing up for his signature, especially with him being a free agent.
Sevilla’s U-turn a major setback for Liverpool’s plans
Sevilla had reported last week that they were not interested in signing the winger after the deadline set by the club was not honoured.
“We set ourselves a deadline to sign Konoplyanka and it has expired. We have ruled out this possibility and we are now working on other options,” Sevilla sporting director Monchi told the club’s official website.
The three-time Ukrainian Footballer of the Year has been linked with a number of Premier League clubs in the past.Tottenham Hotspur was heavily interested while West Ham had made an audacious £12 million bid ahead of the 2013/14 season, which was unsurprisingly turned down.
It was Liverpool however that came very close to a deal in the 2014 January transfer window. In fact, Sky Sports reported in February that Dnipro’s executive director Andriy Rusol had expressed confidence that the player was likely to move to Anfield in the summer transfer window.
“I’m thousand percent sure that Liverpool will try again in the summer and then we’ll let him go,” Rusol told Ukranian media outlets.
Sevilla’s announcement that they were pulling out of the race for Konopylanka had led to Liverpool renewing their interest, especially with the uncertainty regarding Raheem Sterling’s future.
Sevilla gearing up for the Champions League
A change in regulations announced in 2013 that Europa League winners will have the right to qualify for the UEFA Champions League meant the Spanish club earned a direct berth in the group stages of the competition despite finishing fifth in the La Liga standings.
Sevilla have been active in the transfer window with a view to transforming their Europa League success in the past two seasons to Europe’s elite competition.They have already signed Gael Kakuta from Chelsea, Danish midfielder Michael Krohn-Dehli and Adil Rami from AC Milan, who signed Sevilla’s top scorer last season, Carlos Bacca.
