STARS IN EUROPE - IVORY COAST - BONY JOINS MAN CITY

MAN CITY WILFRIED BONY

Swansea City have agreed a £28m fee to sell striker Wilfried Bony to Premier League champions Manchester City.

The Ivory Coast international, 26, joined Swansea for a club-record £12m from Vitesse Arnhem in 2013 and was the Premier League's top scorer in 2014 with 20 goals.

The fee breaks the Welsh club record sale of £15m that Liverpool paid Swansea for Joe Allen in August 2012.

The two clubs hope to conclude the deal in the next 48 hours.

City expect personal terms and a medical to be hitch-free, despite Bony being on Africa Cup of Nations duty with Ivory Coast for at least the next three weeks.

The deal is £25m cash upfront with a further £3m in performance-related add-ons.

Swansea manager Garry Monk previously said it would take an "astronomical" fee to prise his top scorer away from the Liberty Stadium.

Bony, who scored an injury-time equaliser for Swansea against QPR on New Year's Day, has fired nine goals in 22 appearances this season.

Man City were without injured strikers Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko for the festive period and manager Manuel Pellegrini is keen to add further depth to his squad.

The Chilean, 61, had indicated he was not looking to do serious business in the January transfer window.

The club were hit with Uefa sanctions last year for breaching financial fair play rules which included a spending cap of £49m, plus any money raised from transfer fees.

They spent around £48m in the summer on Eliaquim Mangala, midfielder Fernando, and goalkeeper Willy Caballero, although they sold Jack Rodwell to Sunderland for a reported £10m and midfielder Javi Garcia joined Zenit St Petersburg for £13m.

But with Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham reported to be interested in Bony, it is the Premier League champions who have moved quickest to bolster their attacking options.

Wilfried Bony