Nabil Fekir is no longer an Olympique Lyonnais player. It was late on Monday evening that the Rhône club officialised the sale of its captain - who had lit up France's top flight with some majestic displays of skill and heart since 2013 - to Real Betis Seville.

Two Fekirs

The Spanish club paid €19.75 million euros to recruit the playmaker who helped France to World Cup glory one year ago. Bonuses of up to €10 million, as well as 20 per cent profit-sharing on any capital gain, have also been negotiated by OL.

Fekir will be joined in Spain with his brother Yassin, another OL youth product, who got his first taste of top-flight football under now-departed coach Bruno Genesio late last season. The club is understood to have negotiated a 50 per cent resale dividend as part of the deal for the younger Fekir, 22.

WATCH: All of Nabil Fekir's career-best 18 goals from the 2017-18 campaign

Golden generation

Nabil Fekir's departure marks the end of the golden generation of home-grown OL talent that saw the likes of Alexandre Lacazette, Corentin Tolisso and Samuel Umtiti emerge as world-class footballers and help the club through a financial re-structuring that now has the club owning its own arena - the Groupama Stadium.

The Lyon native, who scored 69 goals in six senior seasons with Lyon, had only one year left in his contract with his boyhood club and had proclaimed his desire for a new challenge after a last-minute hiccup scotched his move to Liverpool one year ago.

New challenge

The club's new coaching set-up - sporting director Juninho and coach Sylvinho, who arrived at the end of last season - have had nothing but praise for Fekir, and have been vocal champions of his staying with the club, but reportedly the player was determined to move on.