Manchester City have agreed to sign Manuel Akanji from Borussia Dortmund, Fabrizio Romano claims, following rumours of Arsenal interest in the centre-back.
Akanji is free to leave Dortmund this week after entering the final 12 months of his contract at the Westfalenstadion. Dortmund would rather let him go now than risk him departing on a free transfer next summer.
Arsenal are long-term admirers of the 27-year-old. And according to Sport Witness, the Gunners were one of the clubs planning to begin negotiations for his signature.
However, these discussions never occurred and this gave Manchester City the chance to snap Akanji up.
On Tuesday, The Athletic revealed Pep Guardiola’s side to be confident about completing a deal with Dortmund.
Few outlets had put City on Akanji’s trail. It seems their chiefs worked hard in the background to secure a deal, without any sources knowing.
The Athletic claim the transfer will be worth £15million (around €17.5m). This represents a good deal for City as they are getting an experienced international defender for less than his transfer value.
But it is also good for Dortmund, who are picking up a decent fee despite Akanji nearing the end of his BVB contract.
Manuel Akanji to Man City gets Romano confirmation
Fabrizio Romano has now given the crucial ‘here we go’ to the City switch. He states City and Dortmund have come to an agreement over the signing.
Contracts are apparently being prepared right now. However, Romano disputes The Athletic’s fee slightly.
He claims Akanji will move to the Etihad in a €17m deal, which works out at around £14.6m. This would be even better value for the Citizens.
It shouldn’t be too long before City announce the capture. Akanji has already agreed personal terms with them and is set to undergo a medical later today (Wednesday).
Romano also provides an update on City’s existing centre-back options. He reveals none of them will be leaving in the final few days of the transfer window.
Chelsea were hoping to take Nathan Ake back to Stamford Bridge. He was there as a youngster, before leaving for Bournemouth in 2017.
Chelsea ultimately couldn’t reach Ake’s price tag, which sits at around £50m.
Aymeric Laporte was also on Chelsea’s radar. But he is even more important to Guardiola than Ake and this made a summer transfer very unlikely.
Laporte is currently injured, which is why City made moves to bring in a new centre-half. Akanji will provide backup for Ruben Dias, John Stones and Ake until Laporte returns.
City have previously been monitoring the development of RB Leipzig star Josko Gvardiol. He is now a prime target for Chelsea, and an RB Leipzig chief has given his verdict on the possible move.
