Soccer-Sevilla's January signing Jovetic pays big dividends

MADRID, Jan 16 ( Reuters) - Sevilla's long-serving sporting director Monchi appears to have hit the jackpot by bringing Inter Milan outcast Stevan Jovetic to the club during in the winter transfer window.

After scoring on his debut in Thursday's 3-3 draw against Real Madrid in the King's Cup, the 27-year-old came on as a second-half substitute to strike a stoppage-time winner against the same opponents in La Liga on Sunday.

The 2-1 win ended Real's record 40-game unbeaten run and allowed Sevilla to cut the gap with the league leaders to one point.

"We've made the league much more entertaining," the Montenegro international told Sevilla's website. "This is my first win and against a great team like Real Madrid. I feel a special pride."

Jovetic, who began his career at Partizan Belgrade, scored 40 goals in 134 appearances for the Fiorentina after joining the Italian club in 2008.

After moving to Manchester City in a 22 million pound ($26.57 million) transfer in 2013, nagging injuries limited him to 11 Premier League starts in his two seasons there.

A loan move to Inter Milan in the summer of 2015 brought a revival as he netted six goals in 26 Serie A games under Roberto Mancini. But, after Mancini's departure, he lost his place under Frank de Boer and current Inter boss Stefano Pioli this season.

"Luckily for us, Jovetic arrived early in the transfer window," said Sevilla coach Jorge Sampaoli.

"In recent times he hasn't been able to show his virtues but I hope that he will at Sevilla and that he helps us in the future." ($1 = 0.8281 pounds) (Reporting by Adriana Garcia; editing by Brian Homewood)