Ex Barcelona Star, David Villa Signs With American Club New York City FC

Barcelona forward David Villa has left the coffers of Spanish la liga champions Athletico Madrid and he is not going to sign for any other European club as he has headed to North America's biggest football league; The Major League Soccer.

New York City has announced the signing of the 32 year-old former Athletico striker on a three year deal.

New York City is jointly owned by Premiership side Manchester City and Major League Baseball side New York Yankees. The club tweeted on its twitter handle: "Welcome to New York City: David Villa (@Guaje7Villa) officially signs as #NYCFC's first ever player. #VillatoNYCFC."

The Spain forward helped Athletico to a la liga triumph since 1996 and a UEFA champions league final place where they lost Real Madrid.

All through his football career, Villa has never played outside the shores of Spain, he has made huge headlines in the transfer seasons before joining Barcelona from Valencia in 2010.

"An irresistible opportunity," Villa said in an interview posted on Athletico's website.

"Throughout my career I've always tried to keep pushing myself to achieve new targets and this represents another important goal for me.

"I want to try and help MLS continue to grow, through playing, working hard, scoring goals and at the same time try to make New York City FC become the best team in the league.

"It's a real honour that the people who have formed the club have focused their attention on me. I'm keen to do the best I can, take on board that extra responsibility and prove my worth by repaying the confidence they have shown in me," Villa told his former club's website

Villa leaves Spain with notable successes behind with his previous clubs. While at Barcelona, he won two Spanish league titles and the Champions league, lifted the Copa del rey while at Valencia and Zaragoza.

He has won the World Cup and the European Championship with the nataional team in 2010 and 2008 respectively, scoring 56 goals in total for the la rojas.

The Sporting Director at his new club said: "David is the perfect first signing for New York City FC. His individual accomplishments are remarkable.

"His experiences, including winning the 2010 World Cup, will be invaluable for building our club's sporting culture. I couldn't be more excited to welcome him to New York City and have him as our club's first player."

David Villa is currently with the Spanish team preparing for the World Cup.