LONDON (THE GUARDIAN) - Nolito is likely to leave Manchester City, with Sevilla thought to be favourites to sign the Spanish forward.

The 30-year-old fell out of favour during his first season at the Etihad Stadium, starting only nine Premier League matches, and told the Spanish radio station El Transistor that he had struggled to settle in Manchester and wanted to leave.

Rumours linking Nolito with a loan move to Sevilla were fuelled further when he was spotted in a Seville ice cream parlour with the club's sporting director, Oscar Arias, though Atletico Madrid, Real Betis and the forward's former club Celta Vigo are also reported to have shown interest in him.

Nolito told El Transistor: "I am under the contract, so the club will decide, but I want to leave. I haven't played in six months. I will do everything possible to make Spain's World Cup squad.

"I have learnt very, very little English - it's very hard. Just 'tomorrow', 'good morning', 'good afternoon' and a little more. My daughter's face has changed colour - it looks like she's been living in a cave."

He insisted that the meeting with Arias was coincidental.

"I was just casually shopping for clothes for my wife in Seville," he said. "I went to get a coffee and bumped into Sevilla's director of football casually."

He joined City for £13.8 million (S$24.59 million) from Celta last summer but has failed to establish himself in Pep Guardiola's side, and has not started a match since the FA Cup draw at Huddersfield Town in February.