Manuel Akanji has signed a five-year contract with Manchester City, the defender joining from Borussia Dortmund and stating his delight after becoming Pep Guardiola’s fifth summer signing.
Injuries to Nathan Aké and Aymeric Laporte may have moved the manager to add further depth to his defence, with the Switzerland international following Kalvin Phillips, Stefan Ortega, Sergio Gómez and Erling Haaland, who was also signed from Dortmund.
The 27-year-old 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. Pep Guardiola is an exceptional manager and this is an exceptional squad of players so this is an exciting opportunity for me.”
Txiki Begiristain, City’s sporting director, said: “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 other defenders in our team and our style of play.”
Akanji made 158 appearances for Dortmund and has 41 Switzerland caps. He began his career at Winterthur in 2014 before moving to Basel, where he claimed consecutive Swiss Super Leagues.
Akanji becomes Guardiola’s fifth centre-back, joining Laporte, Aké, Rúben Dias and John Stones.
