Darmian departs Manchester United for permanent Parma move

Matteo Darmian has ended a difficult period at Manchester United by completing a permanent move to Parma.

Italy international Darmian returns to his homeland after agreeing a four-year deal with Roberto D'Aversa's side.

The full-back was quoted over the weekend as telling Sky Sport Italia the move was an "important opportunity" to revive his national team career, Darmian having last been capped in 2017.

Darmian's appearances in the Premier League waned from 28 in his first season to six in his last at Old Trafford.

He becomes the fourth United player to finalise a switch to Serie A in recent weeks, after Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez both joined Inter and Chris Smalling signed for Roma on loan.

Parma, ninth in the table after two games, have reportedly paid around €1.5million (£1.4m) to sign the 29-year-old.

Benvenuto Matteo @DarmianOfficial! https://t.co/g0udTb2vUA#Darmian #NextchApter #ForzaParma pic.twitter.com/Aq4rHzS0Ym

— Parma Calcio 1913 (@ParmaCalcio_en) September 2, 2019