Lucas Perez pays part of own transfer fee to seal return to boyhood club Deportivo La Coruna
Former Arsenal forward Lucas Perez has paid part of his transfer fee to secure a return to local club Deportivo La Coruna.
Perez had been playing in La Liga for Cadiz, where he is their top scorer this season. However, the 34-year-old was desperate to rejoin Deportivo as he "couldn't stand" seeing them in the third tier of Spanish football.
Deportivo are currently fourth in the Primera Federacion, four points behind league leaders Cordoba after 17 fixtures.
Perez, who is closing in on 100 appearances for Deportivo across two spells, will now look to steer them back into the second division - and professional football - after dropping two leagues.
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Perez has signed a one-and-a-half year deal but should the Galician team achieve promotion, the contract could be for three-and-a-half years.
He would also have the opportunity to move into a non-playing role within the club. However, if they remain lurched in the third tier the ex West Ham man is able to terminate the deal.
AS say Perez tried to head back to Deportivo in the summer but Cadiz president Manuel Vizcaíno did not feel as though the "right conditions were not in place for his sale"
This time around Vizcaíno agreed to negotiate and Perez made the move happen by covering a portion of the transfer fee.
After scoring for Cadiz in a 1-1 draw with Almeria on 30 December, he is set to be presented as a Deportivo player before making his debut on Sunday against Unionistas.
He hit 17 goals for Depor while they were in La Liga in 2015/16 before joining Arsenal. Perez headed back on loan in 2017/18, this time finding the net on eight occasions.
A sleeping giant, Depor were La Liga champions in 1999/2000 and got to the semi-finals of the Champions League in 2003/04.
Josh Lawless