Atletico Madrid's Carrasco, Gaitan Join Chinese Super League's Dalian Yifang
Atletico Madrid duo Yannick Carrasco and Nicolas Gaitan have both joined Chinese Super League side Dalian Yifang, the La Liga club have announced.
Carrasco emerged as one of Europe's finest wingers last season, scoring 10 goals and adding four assists, while Gaitan has struggled to cut it in La Liga after swapping Portugal for Spain in 2016, joining Atletico from Benfica.
The club announced the deals via their Twitter page and released separate statements thanking both Carrasco and Gaitan for their contributions.
Dalian Yifang finished first in the Chinese League One in 2017, earning promotion to the Super League, and recently signed former West Ham and Southampton defender Jose Fonte.
Carrasco, who is expected to play for Belgium at the World Cup in Russia later this year, and Gaitan are the latest players to move to China, with stars like Hulk, Alex Teixeira and Oscar all switching Europe for Asia with varying degrees of success in recent years.
Neither player won a domestic or European honor with Atletico, who are well placed in the Europa League and seven points behind La Liga leaders Barcelona.
Both wingers have fallen behind Saul Niguez and Koke for starting berths in Diego Simeone's Atletico side, with neither Carrasco or Gaitan featuring in the squad for Los Colchoneros' 5-2 win over Sevilla on Sunday.
