Manchester City have announced the signing of experienced central defender Manuel Akanji from Borussia Dortmund.
Akanji, 27, is a Switzerland international with 41 caps who was entering the final year of his contract with the German club having joined the club in January 2018 from FC Basel and made 158 appearances for the Germans.
He has signed a five-year deal which will keep him at the club until the summer of 2027 and has taken the number 25 shirt which was vacated by Fernandinho after he left the club in the summer.
City moved after recent injuries to Aymeric Laporte – who could be out for several more weeks – and Nathan Ake left them with two fit central defenders for a tough period before the World Cup with games every 3-4 days.
Akanji will not be short of friends at the Etihad as he follows star striker Erling Haaland who made the move to the Etihad a few weeks ago and knows left back Sergio Gomez from his time with Borussia Dortmund II.
With auxiliary option Kalvin Phillips also injured and Luke Mbete an inexperienced option the opportunity came up to sign a good squad player for a fee of £15m and City moved.
Akanji said: “I am delighted to be here and can’t wait to get started.
“City have been one of the best teams in Europe over the last few seasons.
“They are brilliant to watch, play an exciting brand of football and compete for trophies year in, year out, so coming here feels like the perfect next step in my career.
“Pep Guardiola is an exceptional manager and this is an exceptional squad of players, so this is an exciting opportunity for me.
“I am really looking forward to testing myself in the Premier League and I will do everything I can to help this Club be successful.”
Director of Football Txiki Begiristain added: “Manuel has plenty of experience playing at the top level of European football and we are confident he will be a valuable addition to our squad.
“We have been impressed with his performances during his time at Dortmund, where he has developed into a very good defender and one who is ready to perform in both the Premier League and Champions League.
“He has everything we want in a centre-back. He is strong, quick, comfortable in possession, has an excellent passing range and he will complement the other defenders in this team and our style of play.”
With the completion of the deal for Akanji, Luke Mbete was allowed to leave on loan to Huddersfield Town while City also confirmed the departures of academy products Samuel Edozie and Juan Larios for fees of £10m and £6m to Southampton.
The Saints have already purchased Gavin Bazunu and Romeo Lavia from City as they pursue a youth based strategy this season.