Roberto Soldado joins Villarreal and says to Tottenham fans: 'I'm sorry I didn't meet expectations'

The striker had joined Spurs for £26m

Roberto Soldado poses in his new Villarreal training gear today (twitter.com/R9Soldado)

Roberto Soldado has penned an astonishingly honest letter to Tottenham fans, after leaving the club to join Villarreal having scored just 16 goals for Spurs since moving for a then club-record £26m in August 2013.

In a letter posted on his Twitter account, Soldado apologised to the Spurs faithful for "not being able to meet the club's expectations" of him (read below).

In total, he made 76 appearances over the course of his two seasons at White Hart Lane and found himself below Harry Kane in the pecking order in the second half of last term.

The 30-year-old has now been thrown a lifeline by Villarreal, who have confirmed Soldado has agreed a three-year deal and will be presented on Monday.

Soldado, who started his career at Real Madrid, earned his reputation as one of the best strikers in La Liga at Getafe then Valencia, for whom he scored 81 times in 141 appearances.

That convinced Tottenham to bid a club-record fee to bring him to England although Soldado did not have the same impact in the Barclays Premier League, where he only found the net on seven occasions in 52 appearances.

The Spain international scored once in 24 league appearances last season and will now hope to rebuild his reputation in his home country.

"We have reached agreement with La Liga side Villarreal for the transfer of Roberto Soldado," said Spurs in a short statement.

"We wish Roberto all the best for the future."

Villarreal finished sixth in La Liga last season and, like Tottenham, will compete in the Europa League this season.

Additional reporting by PA