Fulham defender Fernando Amorebieta is heading to Spain after signing to Sporting de Gijón from Fulham for a small fee.
With spells on loan to Middlesbrough over past two seasons, the defender’s future at Craven Cottage was in doubt for some time after failing to become a first-team regular.
The Venezuelan international, who made 50 appearances for the Whites, will now join up with the La Liga side for their summer pre-season in Portugal.
Sporting de Gijón head coach Abelardo faced competition from Alavés for the 31-year-old, who joined Fulham from Athletic Bilbao in 2013 after 10 seasons there.
The Whites were happy to let Amorebieta leave on a permanent basis now, rather than risk letting him run down his contact and leave on a free transfer next year.
Amorebieta was also a target for Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez as an alternative to Grant Hanley before the Blackburn defender moved to the Magpies.
Amorebieta will prove a valuable addition to Sporting Gijon with his ability to play centre-back and left-back.
Sporting had been on the lookout for a central defender after losing Bernardo Espinosa to Middleborough and Luis Hernández to Leicester.