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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Sport

Mousa Dembele leaves Tottenham to join Chinese Super League outfit Guangzhou R&F in £9m deal

Tottenham have sold Mousa Dembele to Chinese Super League outfit Guangzhou R&F in a deal worth £9 million.

The midfielder leaves English football eight and a half years after arriving from Dutch side AZ, the majority of which he spent with Spurs.

Dembele has been an influential player in north London, with Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino describing the midfielder as one of five "genius players" he has met, alongside Diego Maradona, Ronaldinho, Jay-Jay Okocha and Ivan de la Pena.

The 31-year-old was out of contract with Tottenham in the summer so, with his fitness struggles this season, Spurs decided to cash in.

The midfielder said in an interview shown on Spurs' Twitter account: "I've always had a good experience here. I go away with an unbelievable feeling and with a certain love for the club.

"You always want this, because you have a long period at a club, you have a lot of love for the club but sometimes you separate in a bad way and I don't feel that way.

"Even the reaction I've had from the supporters, everyone is positive with me. They've wished me a lot of luck and happiness. The club is part of my family now."

It is understood Dembele was keen to play in a less demanding league as he struggled with the pace of the Premier League amid a recurring foot problem.

Dembele leaves Tottenham with almost 250 games under his belt. His last appearance was a seven-minute outing in November's 3-2 away win at Wolves where he started but was forced off through injury.

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