Axel Witsel will leave Zenit St. Petersburg to sign with Tianjin Quanjian of the Chinese Super League.

Witsel's deal with Zenit was set to expire at the end of the season and he rejected a chance to join Juventus.

Witsel will earn €20 million ($20.8 million) per season with Tianjin.

“It was a very difficult decision because on one hand there was a great team and a top club like Juventus,” Witsel said this week.

“But on the other there was a crucial offer for my family that I couldn’t turn down. The leadership at Juventus have always behaved like gentlemen with me and I can only be grateful to them.

“I will cheer for Juventus and I hope they can win the Champions League. Then who knows, maybe one day in the future our paths will finally meet.”